HO 2: Omega Family Christmas
by AkinaSky
Summary: 2nd of HIDDEN OMEGA Series... The Hales, The Stilinskis, and the Oseric families as well as a few others (Scott, Alison and Melissa) have all got together at the rebuilt Hale house in Beacon Hills for Christmas break and this is the chaos that ensues. This is a M/M/M with Derek Hale, Stiles Stilinski and (OC) Garrick Oseric.
1. Overwhelmed by Family

**Author's Note: Only saying this once, Teen wolf characters don't belong to me; The Oserics', Several of the Hales and other characters do belong to me so please don't use them. This story takes place just after finals and sort of immediately after the last story ends.**

**Chapter One: Overwhelmed by Family**

Garrick Oseric came from a small community of betas and turned wolves. There were very few alphas and omegas, there was rarely ever any Caste dynamics to deal with and so Christmas as an event was always presents at home with his mother and father and sister. They didn't really do anything else besides that. It wasn't a big deal.

Apparently this season, this Christmas holiday was a big deal to the Hale family and the small Stilinski clan. He sat between his mates, Stiles and Derek on the couch and looked at the freaking diagram pinned to the wall on the other side of the room and took in a deep breath, wondering how he was going to get through the next couple of weeks without falling apart at some point. There was a diagram on the wall about the coming weeks, assignments and decorating committees with convoluted team building exercises and events. He counted at least three family dinners to which there were separate menus and seating charts and he just kept staring quietly. Stiles was rubbing a hand across his shoulders and Derek was smiling passively at his mother with a hand wrapped around Ricky's hand. He felt warm and loved and just freaking overwhelmed.

He looked hastily over at his parents and sister and noticed they were wearing the same mask of uncertain fear. It was interesting to all of them, that people were this involved in the holidays, that there had to be something to do at every moment otherwise maybe they weren't wringing all the could out of the time together but then Ricky had never lost anyone in his lifetime, both sets of grandparents were alive and well, living out their lives close to his parents, he'd never lost a parent to hunters. He hoped he would never know what it was like to be an alpha who lost her mate, let alone two. Talia had to feel a little desperate to not only keep the rest of her family safe but also to have all the time in the world with them.

So Ricky would just have to make sure his family took time when they needed to and he took time to just be with Derek and Stiles then he didn't see the harm in being incredibly overwhelmed by this family. It was going to happen because there were multiple alphas and he had never spent much time with them up till now. Apparently he was going to learn a lot about pack Caste systems and dynamics before this vacation was over.

"Okay well that is everything, we are going to have lunch in about an hour and we'll figure the rest of it out. So break!" Talia called and everyone started stretching and leaving the room. Garrick stood and walked over to his little family, dwarfed by the size of the Hale family, even the Stilinski had bonded to the McCall's and Allison. He smiled, "So that was a thing," he said with false cheer.

"Hey Garrick, you married into a weird group of wolves," Ravyn said obnoxiously loud. Garrick resisted the urge to shush her, his mother nudged her none to gently though since this wasn't their home and there was no way to keep a conversation private in the home of werewolves. Then he slid his finger to the ring on his left hand and spun it around his finger.

"They are family now Rave, try and remember to be polite and respectful, this is a house and family of alphas. I am mated into this family and I would really like to be welcomed back next holiday."

His sister just chortled in response to his little speech. His mother rolled her eyes and smiled to Ricky, "Look your mates are waiting for you and we are going to spend some time this afternoon doing some Christmas shopping before the craze of the Hale Game Plan starts. Just don't worry about us, we are going to be fine and we won't do anything to hurt your chances for peace with this family."

"Thanks Mom," Ricky said and hugged his parents then bopped Ravyn on the forehead with the heel of his hand before he kissed her in the same place. He watched as they left the room and felt when Stiles' hands slipped around to his chest and pulled him close. He knew Derek was standing off to the side as well.

"So, you doing okay Ricky?" Stiles asked as he pressed a kiss to the back of the beta's neck. Ricky smiled and tilted his head to receive more from Stiles but the little omega just pulled away and they walked out of the room and back to the room they shared. Ricky flopped down inelegantly on the side of the bed and sighed.

Derek chuckled as he closed the door, giving the three of them some privacy, "I promise its not always like this, my mother is just overcompensating having so many new pack members is making her a little overexcited."

"I'll be fine, just a little overwhelmed."

Stiles walked over and pushed Ricky back a little so he could sit down on Ricky's lap and the beta pressed his hands into Stiles' thighs where they were settled on the outside of his legs. Derek was still leaning against the door so Ricky just focused as Stiles pressed a gentle hand into the side of Ricky's neck and pressed a kiss into the beta's mouth, nose then his closed eyes.

"Make me a promise Ricky, that you will walk into the library any time you need some privacy and you read and spend some alone time with Derek and me if you are ever on the verge of being overwhelmed."

Ricky smiled into the continued caresses from his omega. He nodded, "I promise to take what time I need to be okay. I know Talia is a wonderful alpha and mother, she's going to do everything in her power to make everyone comfortable but I can't deny that this big family thing is a little more than anything I have ever dealt with."

Stiles smiled and kissed Ricky on the mouth again, "I'm used to it because I was raised close to the Hale family as well as several other large packs but I understand your reticence."

"Such big words huh, little man. Gets me all hot when you talk like that."

Stiles snorted, "Your fault, you talked me through my finals and you didn't use small words despite all the times I begged you to."

Ricky nodded, remembering the time Stiles and he spent studying and all the whining that Stiles did when the beta refused to back down. Stiles ended up with all higher grades, better than Stiles had imagined after the first semester they had, between his first Heat and being kidnapped, it had been a challenge but it was something that Ricky thoroughly enjoyed doing. Instead of answering, Ricky pressed forward and kissed Stiles on the mouth for a second before he tucked his hands around the omega's lower back and kept him close. He tucked his head into Stiles' neck and inhaled the sweet scent of the omega and grinned before he pressed a closed mouth kiss to the side of Stiles' throat.

"Don't distract me," Stiles muttered and Ricky chuckled into the omega's throat.

"Wasn't trying to distract you. What am I distracting you from?" Ricky whispered into Stiles' skin.

"I am trying to make sure you are going to take care of you in the next couple of weeks, then you can take care of me and Derek and everyone else comes after that."

Ricky nodded into Stiles' skin, "Sounds good to me."

"So our first job from the plan is to go do our own shopping later today, did you want to split up and go with family members?" Stiles asked before he dislodged himself from Ricky's lap much to the beta's dismay. He hopped around the room excitedly, changing into his day clothes from the pajamas he'd been wearing for much of the morning. Derek just stood by the door; a somber expression on his face and Ricky threw aside all the other stuff he might be worried about, jumping up from the bed and crossing the room to press his hand into the side of Derek's neck and the alpha smiled a little at him. "I'm okay."

"You haven't been back since the hunters and your dad?" Ricky asked gently.

Derek nodded but didn't say anything, "Is the house the same?"

"No," Derek whispered with a subtle shake of his head, "My mother changed a lot of the house and it's bigger now as well. It's the perfect place for us to find our footing in our first years together then we can always go somewhere else."

Ricky snorted, "This is a beautiful home Derek and I would be proud to call this my home as well."

Derek smiled, "I love you Gari."

Ricky grinned and pressed a quick kiss to Derek's mouth before the got ready to leave the house. They decided that Stiles was going to pair up with Cora and Derek drove to the mall with Derek, Otto and Ravyn who decided to go with Ricky instead of their parents who were fooling around on their phones in the back seat. Derek drove behind the jeep in front of them where Cora was with their little omega. Ricky could see the wild movement of Cora's hands while they talked.

"You think Cora and Stiles will have a good time together today?" Ricky asked.

Otto snorted from the back seat, "Cora makes Stiles look like a mute, they will get along just fine as long as they can take turns talking."

Ricky kept looking sideways at Derek who was still uncomfortably quiet but Ricky couldn't sense anything beyond the sadness left over from being in his old house. He didn't know what else there was to say so Ricky just went back to watching the countryside go by. He wasn't going to talk about private things like Derek's feelings in front of others, even family. Derek deserved privacy if he was going to struggle with the past and being brought back home, even if he wanted to be here it was still understandably hard for Ricky's alpha to work through all that stuff.

When they pulled into the parking lot and parked the Camaro well away from the busier areas of the lot, Otto and Ravyn let out annoyed groans. "Come on man! No one's going to touch your car, everyone knows who it belongs to!" Otto said annoyed.

Derek just shrugged and helped everyone out of the car before he walked around the front of the car and pressed Ricky into the side of the car with his warm body. The beta stood shocked by the blatant need to scent him but didn't deny Derek the right. The alpha pressed his nose into the side of Ricky's neck and inhaled sharply. "You're mine," he said and Ricky laughed.

"Yes I am, but you better hurry if you're going to scent Stiles before he walks into the mall," no sooner did Ricky stop speaking and gesture towards the omega who was walking towards the entrance and Derek acted. The alpha grinned, kissed Ricky once more and nodded to Otto before he took off towards their other mate. Ricky chuckled and he walked towards the entrance with Ravyn next to him. It was going to be an interesting day.


	2. Mall Craze

**Chapter Two: Mall Craze**

Derek looked around the small Beacon Hills mall and sighed, he knew it was tiny compared to a lot of places but he didn't like it all the same. All the scents overlapping each other, the emotions and highly unhealthy food served were all a muddled chaos for the senses. He had grabbed Stiles and scented the omega before Cora dragged the grinning younger man away into the mall and Derek waited a few seconds for Otto to catch up before walking in as well.

He knew he was supposed to be finding presents for people, the Hale family tended to do presents a little differently. The alpha tends to give gifts to all the kids as well as mates but each other person would pick a name from a basket and do a secret Santa gift. Derek wanted to give presents to Garrick and Stiles as well as his mother. He knew his mother was going to try to mix up the families, allow the Oseric family to get to know some of the Hales and the Stilinski pack that they were now a part of by extension. Derek knew Ricky's family was struggling with the newness of all this, they didn't understand what Ricky was going through because they didn't have a soul bond but it was the same as any other relationship full of deep emotions, only with the wolf underneath the actions of mates on either side of a soul bond there was also the irrevocable instinct and violence that came with threats against loved ones.

So for now Derek wandered around with Otto and walked into a bookstore and looked around hoping for something that Garrick might like. His beta had a thirst for knowledge and he loved holding onto it in a book, the internet and search engines were helpful and that's where Stiles usually got all his information but Ricky loved books. He searched the titles, breathing in the scent of familiarity and family then he touched one that smelled strangely like his lover. He tugged the thick book from the shelf and looked over the spine, running his fingers along the leather binding. He read the words etched into the cover, The Strength of Unity by Grayson Oseric. Derek's eyes widened and he tucked the book close to his chest, wondering how this was separated from the Oseric library because Ricky's family respected the hell out of the knowledge that was passed from parent to child and he hoped that this would make a good gift though he felt almost sad that he had to wait until Christmas.

Happy with his awesome discovery, wondering now if someone in Ricky's family had once been in Beacon Hills, Derek moved on to pay at the register. The book cost nothing of its true worth. He shook the shopkeeper's hand and Otto walked out of the store with him and shoved Derek gently.

"I like seeing you happy like this, Stiles and Ricky are good for you. You were always so serious before, a real sourwolf and now there is this little smile constantly trying to take up residence on your face. I didn't know what to expect because I didn't know about Cordelia either but it works somehow."

Derek glared at his brother for a moment before that grin Otto spoke of snuck back onto his lips. He threw his hands up in resignation that he was ever going to be serious like he used to be and nudged his brother back. "We were just as surprised when Stiles just up and claimed both of us, even if it wasn't a Bite. Now stop distracting me, I need to find something for Stiles, he likes gaming and movies but that's not really my area of expertise."

Otto looked up from his phone again and Derek was left wondering a little if his brother was talking to someone but refocused as Otto stared at Derek like the other alpha was a little slow in the head, "There is a entertainment store down that way, I'm sure we can find something for him there."

Derek nodded and they started walking but he kept looking around, hoping he might see Ricky or Stiles as they moved around the mall with the girls but he didn't see them surprisingly. He did feel something skitter up his back and scanned the crowd again. He tried to shake off the feeling but suddenly he could feel the wolf within trying to shake off the sensation of being watched but every time he looked around, there was nothing to see.

"You okay Der?" Otto asked as he pointed towards the entertainment store to the right but Derek shook off the feeling one more time and scanned the few stores around them and his eyes landed on something small in a trade shop and walked towards it. The gold whisky color of the stone resembled Stiles' eyes so well that Derek truly believed the stone was made in his omega's image. It was a stone with a flat edge of in the center was a little wolf and he smiled, thinking how appropriate and masculine the small piece of jewelry was especially as it was suspended on a long leather cord. It might not be practical but there was something about it that sang so Derek quickly purchased the pendant, knowing that it would settle right over Stiles' heart.

Otto snorted a little at Derek's purchase but when Derek looked over at his brother, all the younger man did was smile, "I already said Derek, I like this version of you."

Derek nodded and they continued walking through the mall, the alpha keeping his eyes and ears peeled for whatever was making him nervous and he wondered if it was just the overwhelming sensation of the mall. He found a brooch for his mother, green stone to match her dark eyes, and a small crystal flower for Ricky's mother and leather bound journal for Ricky's father as well as an old, but well preserved pocketknife for John Stilinski. He may not need to give gifts to everyone but this was their first Christmas and this was important to him as the alpha of Ricky and Stiles, his mother taught him that being an alpha was all about support and protection not about control and he hoped they would understand that. Someday they would have their own family, one that would be supported by other betas and alphas willing to trust Derek to lead, such as Scott possibly though Derek sensed that the other goofy alpha may be strong enough to lead his own pack, but it would center on his relationship with Stiles and Ricky as it should.

"You going to do any shopping while we're here?" Derek asked his brother.

The younger man shrugged, "I don't know who I should shop for as we haven't pulled our secret Santa names yet."

"There's no one you would buy a gift for anyway?" Derek asked, knowing he was prying but still curious about the younger Hale's focus on the phone in his pocket.

Otto shrugged, "No one of consequence, still just family for me."

Derek nodded, letting go of the issue especially since Otto's heart didn't lie. They walked towards the exit in an unspoken agreement to leave behind the crazy atmosphere of the mall in exchange for the car. He figured they could walk over to the organic food center and pick up some food and staples for while everyone was at the house, werewolves were notorious for eating someone out of house and home. Otto readily agreed to help pick out some food while they were waiting for Stiles and Ricky to rejoin them, Derek quickly dropped his purchases in the trunk of the Camaro, tucking them under a clean blanket he put there for just such occasions, or if someone ever needed help while he was out driving.

Stiles listened happily as Cora talked as they wandered through the stores in the mall, she was telling him what her high school was like, she was one of only a few werewolves so though people accepted wolves among the rest of the populace, Cora and her brother as well as a few others did not make it common knowledge that they were supernatural. It was just safer that way and because of that, they didn't join in any sports, which apparently Cora found annoying, she loved soccer and basketball and pretty much any team type game. Stiles had never been an active wolf, always one for research and video games.

He was just enjoying the crazy energy of his new packmate. Then she started to peter out on the subject and stopped with a giggle, "We're supposed to be shopping."

Stiles shrugged, "So what my mates don't know is that I used one of the few times Derek and Ricky left the room to order their presents and get them sent to my dad's house and they came in yesterday. Dad smuggled them in early today.

Cora threw her head back laughing jovially, "You are too much Stiles Stilinski, what are we doing here then?"

Stiles scoffed, "Throwing them off the scent of course."

"What did you get them?" she asked in a low scheming whisper.

Stiles paused with a grin and motioned her closer, she stood about six inches shorter than Stiles so he leaned down close to her and said clear, "None of your business."

Cora laughed and shoved Stiles, he stumbled back a few steps not surprised that she was actually really strong since she was indeed a werewolf of the Hale Pack, they were all really strong and fast. Stiles was no slouch in speed and stamina but he enjoyed that they were his pack now, he would hopefully never end up at odds with them. Cora decided that since they were there then she would get a couple gifts that she wanted to get and he was dragged into some women focused shops that assaulted the senses with too many scents overlapping each other and then something tingled at the back of his neck and Stiles shifted slightly to look behind him to find someone staring at him from across the mall, she was being incredibly subtle but he'd been watched for most of his life and he knew the signs even then.

He turned back to Cora and spoke to her, "Going to use the gents' room, you gonna stay here?" he asked her and she frowned at him, hearing the minute tremor in his voice but didn't know him well enough to guess what was going on.

"I'll be here, you okay?"

"Just feeling a little funny, be right back," Stiles returned with a hand to his stomach and a face that hopefully looked uncomfortable. He was really pushing his luck, knowing his heart was calm but not constant in the lies. He didn't feel all right though, so it slipped past Cora's notice and he walked away. He didn't look towards the women, focusing on the journey that would take him to the restrooms, he knew this mall like the back of his hand and where the cameras were, staying within line of them the whole way. He pulled open the door to the men's restroom and turned back just a glance to see the same woman tucking herself into the crowd within a nearby store. He took a deep calming breath as he closed the door behind him and pressed his back against it.

Who was she and why was she following him?

Stiles pulled his phone from his pocket and played with it, unlocking the screen just as the door shoved against him as someone was trying to walk in. Stiles turned to apologize and was met with a fist across the cheek and his skin burned as he stumbled away. He had a vague sense of a man, so the woman wasn't alone or there were two different problems all happening on the same day. He would think about it later, Stiles figured as he crouched and rushed the other man and knocking him into the row of sinks, the omega heard bones creak as the slightly larger man hit it too hard and he realized this was a man, not a werewolf. The man came back with another hit across Stiles' cheek and the flash of gold caught in the omega's vision, he was using some sort of knuckles and they burned like wolfsbane!

Stiles figured the only way he was getting out of this was to get out of the confining bathroom where he would have no camera proof of the attack since he was a werewolf and the attacker was a human, he would be blamed whether he was the victim or the aggressor. Stiles slipped on the linoleum floor and pulled on the door and got halfway out when the bastard grabbed him by the ankle and attempted to pull him back. Stiles could feel the burning along his ankle where the man was touching Stiles skin with the wolfsbane infused weapon he was holding. Stiles didn't know how the attacker had so quickly gotten to Stiles fragile skin.

Stiles winced and a hiss of pain slipped between his lips while he kicked out to dislodge the guy while his hands gripped the edge of the wooden door, making it creak in annoyance. Stiles grunted and finally with another kick the guy released his leg and he flew out of the doorway and stumbled to the ground, reaching out to catch himself on his hands. He limped a little on the burning leg as he rose to stand once again only to be tackled backwards from the front, pressing him into the wall next to the bathroom, Stiles locked his eyes on the dark haired woman who was pressing a blade into the side of Stiles' throat, "Hello omega bitch! This is what happens when you come home, shouting your Caste to the world and separating from you mate!" she hissed viciously.

Stiles could smell the burning of his skin once again as the blood trickled down the side of his throat, the wolfsbane whispering across his skin on the blade of the knife. He hadn't ever been attacked with wolfsbane before; he instinctively knew that she and the hooligan in the bathroom were hunters. He'd been warned of them but he'd been hidden up till now.

"Mates!" Stiles finally hissed even as he reached out through his bond with Ricky and Derek, calling for them. He could barely get another word out; there was too much pressure against his throat. He was trying to stall for time, giving his mates a chance to find him in the mess of scents and chaos of the mall.

"What?" the woman asked.

Stiles heard the scuffle of feet from behind the woman as Ricky came towards them in a flurry of rage, his eyes shifting to blue in his need to protect Stiles. Stiles grinned, the look feral in its intent and she was dragged away from him quickly. Her face was a mask of confusion as Ricky tossed her across the floor and pressed himself bodily into Stiles where he was still pressed against the wall. Ricky's throat reverberated in a heavy growl and Stiles pressed his hand against the burning nick in his skin. "Stay away from him!"

The woman watched them, as she gripped the knife in her hand and people all around them started whispering about what was happening. Wondering if they should be calling the police and the hunter must have realized. She took off and Stiles moved away from the bathroom door, aware that the other was just on the other side. Ricky must have scented the wolfsbane or something because he jerked open the bathroom door and saw the man down on the floor and Ricky snarled, his lips curling in anger. Ricky was about to step forward when Stiles gripped the beta's hand. Ricky turned towards Stiles and his eyes were alight with the electric blue of a shift on the cusp.

"No Ricky, if you attack him now, they could punish you. I need you."

Ricky's tension eased and the beta pressed Stiles close while he blocked the door so the other hunter couldn't escape. Stiles pressed his nose into the side of Ricky's neck, glad for the beta's comforting scent, which was chasing away the scent of burning skin as the wolfsbane started to heal from his skin and the mark along with it. It took only seconds for the healing to initiate and a few more after that for Derek to come rushing around the corner with Otto, Cora and Ravyn how on his heels. Derek caught sight of Stiles who was now unable to keep his body from shivering in the aftermath and Ricky's eyes refusing to shutter back to their normal shade and he walked over all while Cora was dialing the Sherriff on her cellphone. Derek made it to them and wrapped his arms around them both whispering to them gently, "I felt something. I should have never let you out of my sight!"

Stiles heaved out a shaky laugh, suddenly sure the alpha wasn't joking.

"What about going to the bathroom?" Stiles joked and when Ricky and Derek gave him matching looks of incredulity he spoke again, "Too soon?"

Cora walked over to them, "The Sherriff is almost here, bringing Parrish as well as Talia so she can see the hunter. There has to be a record of any hunter attacks because it can then keep future ones to a minimum." Stiles had previously known all this intellectually but never in practice, there had been so few attacks in Beacon Hills and the worst was the fire and death of Derek's father. This was going to hurt the alpha and Stiles was going to let him get dominant and protective, at least until the omega stopped shaking.

It didn't take long for his dad to arrive and after a quick hug and check of Stiles' injuries which were sore but healed then he slapped some cuffs on the hunter still cowering in the bathroom and Stiles' dad as well as Talia walked away after the alpha hugged Stiles and Derek and Ricky. She turned to Derek, "Get him home Derek and keep him there."

"Yes ma'am," Derek whispered back to his mother as Stiles watched the exchange with his face still tucked against Ricky's shoulder. As soon as Talia walked away, taking the rest of the chaos and notice with them, Stiles quickly found himself tucked between Derek and Ricky's bodies and they walked out even as Stiles tried not to shiver uncontrollably. He knew he was safe, but he couldn't let go of the fact that the woman was gone and loose, she would come back. She would try this again, knowing what Stiles was, he was a danger to the hunter philosophy of life: make less werewolves not more, especially the zealots who didn't care whether the wolves were hurting people or not.

They made it back to the cars and Derek tucked Stiles into the Camaro gently while he took the jeep keys from Stiles and tossed them to Otto who could drive it back easily. They headed back to the house after the beta and alpha pressed in around them like bookends. A comforting warmth that calmed Stiles like nothing else could. His eyes darted from his hands then back to the driver's side window then on to Ricky's side, over and over again all the while wondering if the woman knew where the Hale house was, or if they were leading her back to their home base right now.

Sensing Stiles unease, Derek turned and made a shushing noise in his mouth and deep in his throat, making it seem like a purr almost. "We're okay Stiles, the woman you spoke of is not following us, no one left as we did."

Stiles nodded but kept up his vigilance.

"I know what its like to be afraid," Derek whispered though inside the car, it still sounded loud to Stiles, who flinched knowing that Derek knew what loss felt like, what the danger of being a wolf pitted against hunters was like. Derek took a deep breath before he continued, "I never stopped looking over my shoulder, not for a long time and even now the thought of Stiles being targeted, the possibility of Ricky getting hurt makes me insane. I can't lose you two like I lost my father and Cordelia who I didn't even know well enough to mourn. I am having a really hard time not putting you both in a room and locking us in and putting pillows down everywhere."

Stiles wanted to laugh at that imagery but honestly; he knew that Derek was telling the truth. The alpha instinct was to protect and defend. Derek wasn't with Stiles when he was attacked and he was not handling it well. Stiles opened up the bond, trying to get a read on the pain Derek was feeling, there was a huge helping of self-recrimination and anger. Stiles pressed a gentle hand into the back of his alpha's neck and kneaded the tense muscles there.

"I'm okay Derek, I'm sorry I walked away from Cora but I needed to know if the woman was actually following me. I didn't know about the other guy, didn't realize he was following too."

Derek nodded and Stiles could smell the salt of his tear before it even dropped down onto his cheek and Stiles scooted over close enough to press his lips to Derek's cheek and sniffle as his own tears started leaking from his eyes, "You didn't fail me Der. That could never happen."

"Yes it could, you could die!"

"Even then Der, you would have done everything you could and you need to be there for Ricky, be there for each other if anything ever happened to me. I need to know you can keep on keeping on."

Derek shook his head sharply and Stiles let it go which was good timing since Derek was pulling the Camaro into the lot in front of the house and the jeep was there as well as the Oseric parents. Stiles and Derek got out of the car on the driver side and Ricky rushed out of the car and moved quickly around to take one of Stiles' hands and they walked inside the house and Stiles took in a deep breath and focused on the heartbeats in the house. If they were closed in their bedrooms then he wouldn't hear them because of the soundproofing. He turned towards the stairs, comforted by the scent of home and pack when Peter rushed into the foyer from the living room with his cellphone clutched in his hand.

"Stiles, are you okay?" he asked, his heartbeat erratic with fear and apprehension.

Stiles frowned; he had never received a warm welcome from Peter and had never had a reason to think the other wolf liked him at all. Derek looked shocked as well and Ricky's hand tightened around Stiles' fingers. "Little banged up but fine."

Peter walked towards them and Stiles could feel the tension rising. Peter had been incredibly obnoxious and purposefully hurtful in the past and now he was acting completely different.

Derek took in a deep breath and Stiles did as well, pulling back at the unusual scent of emotions wrapped around the other wolf. The omega frowned at the alpha, "Did you meet an omega? You smell different, all confused and emotional. You're always hard and emotionless all the times I've seen you and you treat Derek horribly for loving me and now you give a damn!"

Peter flinched at his words but he didn't walk away, he took another step forward and tried to touch Stiles but he jerked out of reach while Derek pushed his uncle back a step and the older man looked and smelled hurt by his nephew's action as well as possibly Stiles'.

"Just say it Peter, what's this about?" Stiles demanded though he suddenly wanted to be in bed sleeping. The attack and the wolfsbane infused injuries and subsequent healing tired him out so he was running out of patience. Ricky pressed Stiles' hand into the beta's chest and he could feel Ricky's heartbeat and it settled him somewhat. Derek was almost vibrating with the need to protect Stiles from anything else today, even his family if that was necessary.

"I met someone, her name is Carmen and she is an omega. I can never describe to you how sorry I am about the way I've treated all of you the past months, I could never understand the truth of bonding and loving someone else so much that being without her right now is painful."

Stiles nodded in understanding, he hated being away from Ricky and Derek, "It doesn't take back the way you treated me but I do understand."

Peter nodded, "Please let me know if you need anything. Talia said they have one of the hunters, having them in town threatens us all but definitely the omegas, you and Carmen." He shifted his gaze to Derek, "Protect him."

Stiles' alpha nodded and Peter walked away and they headed upstairs. They got to their room and Stiles moved away from Derek and Ricky to flop down on the bed. He listened as Derek and Ricky pulled off their coats and shoes, putting them down next to the door to take down later, he listened to the subtle and graceful movements they made until they walked over and started tugging on Stiles' shoes and his jacket. The omega smiled when Ricky's hand rubbed into the arch of his foot and he sighed. Derek was tugging off his shirt and unbuttoned his jeans as well. Stiles knew they weren't trying to have sex with him, the arousal he could scent on them was the normal scent that he knew was just part of being a newly mated trio. No what he could feel their need to just be close to him. He didn't open his eyes and didn't move unless they moved him. Soon they were pressed in close to him, Ricky pressing Stiles close to his chest with Derek a wall of strength and warmth at his back. Stiles took a deep breath and relaxed, wondering how a trip to the mall turned into the horrifying drama that happened but then that was his life, good thing Stiles was used to the drama his Caste brought down on himself as well as others.

"I'm sorry," he finally whispered to them. "I don't mean to make everything so complicated."

Derek and Ricky both shushed him, "Don't be stupid," they both said.

Stiles chuckled lightly, knowing they meant it so he settled into them and let their warmth calm his mind and soak into his skin and scent. The day wasn't over and the drama with the hunter was nowhere near done but right now he could pretend.


	3. Alpha Alert

**Chapter Three: Alpha Alert**

Derek stayed pressed against Stiles' back, listening to the omega sleep and the tiny snoring sounds he made. Ricky was rubbing Stiles' arm gently, gliding gently up and down in a soothing rhythm that calmed Derek even though they weren't touching each other. Ricky looked over Stiles' slim shoulder and locked on Derek's gaze. The alpha reached out and touched the side of Ricky's jaw gently, feeling Ricky tremble slightly under his touch. Ricky's lips puckered slightly as Derek's finger slipped across his face and over his mouth.

"I can't do this Gari," he whispered and Ricky nodded.

Ever since Stiles reached out to them through the bond and he felt the fear and pain that Stiles was in and there was nothing he could do but run. He dropped everything, leaving his poor brother with all the groceries, which he still didn't know if they got home. All he knew was Stiles was alone and in danger. He needed to be with Stiles and ever since then he desperately needed Stiles to not be apart from him, which might work for a while but pretty soon Stiles was going to snap back from this and carry on, he wasn't going to let Derek coddle him.

"He's not going to leave us, we're going to keep him safe Derek," Ricky said in the silence of the room with only the sound of their heartbeats to keep them company.

"I thought my dad was indestructible," Derek said quietly.

Ricky stayed quiet, waiting for Derek to speak or not speak. Sometimes Derek didn't know what they would have done without Ricky to balance them out. Stiles was always seemingly running head long into something while Derek desperately wanted to wrap him up and hide him away but he couldn't do that without destroying Stiles at a fundamental level. Ricky helped them both to build bridges instead of burn them.

"I know I was too young to know Cordelia but my father, he was the powerhouse behind my mother. He always protected us and made sure that we were always together and happy. He made us laugh and we were always rough housing and fooling around. After he died, the laughter went with him. I can't lose the laughter we have with Stiles, I love you so much Ricky but it would be incomplete without him, same as if I lost you." Derek's arms tightened unconsciously around Stiles who grumbled in annoyance without waking. Derek loosened his grip again and pressed a kiss into the side of Stiles' neck. Stiles purred a little at the gesture and Derek went back to looking at Ricky while his hand still rubbed across the beta's skin, into his shoulder and neck in a continuous loop of comfort.

All he could sense from the beta was an amazing sense of Ricky's acceptance and love; Derek was so worried he would take what the alpha said badly. Derek was glad to see Ricky had settled into this, he'd had such a rough time in the beginning and every once in a while it was still a struggle, it was for all of them.

"How do I let him go Ricky? How am I supposed to be okay with him being out where there is a damn hunter and Stiles has a bull's-eye on his head!"

Ricky sighed and grabbed Derek's hand so he could press a kiss to the alpha's palm. Derek smiled at the pleasant sensation zinging through his body at the sensation. Derek pulled away with a quick smile and pulled Stiles across the bed and tucked him under the blanket gently, pressing another kiss into his omega's forehead and looked over to find Ricky staring at him in confusion. Derek smiled a little as he shifted on the bed and pulled the beta against his chest and leaned down and pressed his lips against Ricky's mouth in a gentle kiss. Ricky arched his body into Derek's chest and the alpha smiled into the sensation of having his other mate so close. He slipped a hand down over Ricky's shoulder and pressed into the beta's lower back and pressed their bodies as closely as he could. He didn't want to do much of anything right now but he needed to be close, he also needed to free up the inner wolf for a second. He needed to dominate someone and Ricky seemed willing. About the time Derek was going to double check, Ricky pulled away from his alpha and whispered in Derek's ear, "I know what you need Der, take it."

Derek looked over to Stiles who was still sleeping before he turned back to Ricky and pressed his forehead to his mate's cheek, "Thank you."

Ricky reached out and tugged Derek down for another kiss. Derek pressed into the kiss hard, pressing his teeth into the plump part of Ricky's lower lip for a second, just enough to nick the skin and cause a drop of blood to well at the wound. Derek pressed his tongue back at the wound to soothe the minor ache before he moved his hand back down to removed Ricky's boxers then his own. He didn't know how far they were going to go but he needed to do this right now. He so rarely needed to be the alpha that the fact that Ricky would let him do this when he needed it so badly was just another way he proved to Derek that he loved him.

Derek set out to mark as much of Ricky's skin as he could with teeth and his tongue, suction and just a little bit of pain. The beta just laid on the bed and let Derek do what he needed, one of Derek's hands was holding both of Ricky's hands above his head near the headboard and after a second Ricky moved to hold the wood in his hands to keep them away from Derek. Derek whispered his thanks; his appreciation to Ricky for somehow understanding what this was for him. Derek proceeded to press his lips into Ricky's skin but also he did a partial shift and allowed his nails to slide down Ricky's chest and across his ribcage. The blood welled from the thin points and it healed almost immediately once more, being the mate of an alpha had its privileges. Derek made sure his teeth didn't sharpen and change as he nipped skin here and there as he moved down Ricky's body then he was staring at Ricky's hardened member, it was straining as if it had a mind of its own. Derek continued touching Ricky, offering pleasure and demanding complete obedience if Ricky wanted the pleasure to continue. Derek was pleased every time when he commanded Ricky to do something like: "Don't move again or I will stop." Ricky would moan and do as he asked. They did their best to stay quiet, not to wake the healing omega next to them while Derek played out the dominance he needed to get out of his system. When Derek pressed Ricky's hands above his head and the beta gripped the bed and the alpha grinned, pleased his beta was willing to listen and be dominated. Derek just wanted to show Ricky how much pleasure he could take away from being at Derek's mercy and under his control. He would never hurt Ricky or Stiles with this alpha-like behavior but he was so pleased to find Ricky here beneath him.

"Please Derek," Ricky whispered.

"Gari, do you want me?"

"Yes," Ricky's whimpers turned into a strangled moan, "Please do it."

Happy to know Ricky was here with him, it was all he could do to finish prepping Ricky then they were together, moaning into each other gently. It didn't take them long at all to find release and when they were panting in the aftermath, Derek whispered into his beta's lips, "I didn't hurt you did I?"

Ricky shook his head and Derek waited a few seconds more before they separated and he tucked himself close to his mate and looked over and smiled when he realized Stiles had stayed asleep the whole time.

"He must have been really exhausted from the fight." Derek whispered.

Ricky nodded as he reached over and ran a finger down the side of Stiles' face before he turned to face Derek. The alpha leaned down and pressed another kiss to the side of Ricky's face and he whispered into the beta's skin, "Thank you Gari, I didn't know how I was going to deal with all that energy. I couldn't just pull all that crap on Stiles without getting a little relief. I love you."

Ricky smiled and reached up to pull him close for another kiss and when they separated the moisture in the beta's eyes were of joy and happiness. "I love you so much Derek and you can pull the alpha stuff on me anytime and I bet you anything that in the bedroom, Stiles is going to love it too."

Derek nodded and pressed close to the beta for a little longer; he wasn't under any delusions that a little nap session was going to be the end of this day. There was a lot of things going on for the holidays and his mom was going all out plus the addition of the hunters, it was going to be a holiday to remember.


	4. Just Another Evening

**Chapter Four: Just Another Evening**

Stiles slept deeply and when someone nudged him gently, he woke with a start and sat up panting, looking around the room only to find Ricky holding up his hands in submission, "Hey, you okay?" the beta asked.

"Where's Derek?" Stiles panted when he saw that the alpha wasn't there.

"He went down ahead, lets go meet him."

Stiles took a deep breath and scrubbed his hands over his face then back into his hair and realized that the room had that musk of sex in the air and he looked over to Ricky who immediately looked away and twiddled his thumbs, really! "You had sex without me?" he asked angrily and tried to hide the arousal that immediately rose in him, he tried to mask it in the anger and resentment. Ricky just looked like a kicked puppy so Stiles snickered and continued so he could put Ricky out of his misery. It was just too easy anyway, "Good, Derek needed a release and I am going to take a wild guess that you did too. You are mates, I am okay if you two get together as long as you aren't purposefully excluding me."

Ricky frowned, "You are pretty amazing Stiles Stilinski," he said quietly.

Stiles shrugged before he climbed out of the bed on the side he was on and took the fresh clothes that Ricky was holding out for him. He was getting dressed slowly, still feeling a little drowsy from the effects of the accident and rapid healing with wolfsbane just under the surface. He had felt the uncomfortable itch even in sleep because the poison had a way of getting beneath the surface and the rapid healing would force more of it under the healed skin, which would start the whole process. Thankfully it wasn't enough to keep him from sleeping but it was obnoxious. It was also tiring.

"I need some food, lets get downstairs," Stiles said but he popped over to give Ricky a quick kiss on his cheek before he moved to get changed for the day. Stiles didn't know he was having any problems until they were downstairs and someone dropped a plate, which shattered, and Stiles froze. He heaved in a deep breath and tried to calm his breathing but it didn't work. He could feel his heart rate increasing, as he looked around the room, sure that there was some kind of danger. His breathing stuttered and skipped into pants, and there was nothing to stop the panic from rising to choke him. Stiles gasped harshly and grabbed his chest.

"Stiles?" someone asked and then hands were all over him and it made everything worse. Everyone's heartbeats were suddenly there inside his head and overwhelming the sound of his own. He got these attacks a lot of the time when he was younger, especially after his mother died but it had been a long time. He'd always used his own heartbeat, regulating it to calm himself, the beat was something continuous even when it was rushing but now with so many people crowding in on him, he couldn't breathe and couldn't hear his heart beat and he needed some space!

His legs collapsed and he fell into arms that were holding him up and then he heard the whispered words in his ear, "Come on little man, and come back to us."

Derek's voice was slow and even, there was no tension and fear to force his panic attack to become even louder. Suddenly he was being held in the alpha's arms gently, and Ricky's hands were pressed into his cheeks. He also sensed when all the other people moved away from Stiles, giving him some space.

"Just listen to the sound of my voice and let all that panic slip away, no one is going to hurt you if I can help it," Derek's voice soothed the fear in him until his breathing evened out and he was able to open his eyes again. Yeah, Ricky was kneeling down in front of the omega and Derek's arms were holding him close from the back. He took a couple of deep breaths and his heart reclaimed its easy and calm rhythm. Stiles pressed in close and pressed his lips into Ricky's mouth gently before he shifted and climbed off Derek's chest, "Well everyone, the show is over and I'll be here all week," he snarked hoping to get the attention off of him.

There were a few scattered chuckles around the room and then Derek rose from the floor and Stiles tucked himself into Derek's chest and Ricky pressed himself in close to sandwich around Stiles and he breathed in the scent of mates and comfort and home.

"I haven't done that in a while," Stiles whispered to them with a breathy chuckle.

"You were attacked today Stiles, just give it time."

Stiles nodded at Derek's calming words, "Thanks for being here, everyone's heartbeats were overwhelming me. I couldn't hear my own and that's how I normally calm myself."

Derek nodded against Stiles' neck and he could feel Ricky's breath puffing against his neck. Then the beta's lips were pressing gently there as well for just a feather light touch before they were moving away from each other. They headed into the living room where there was a mountain of food all over the top. Stiles and his mates quickly filled their large plates then settled around the table. Stiles checked in with his dad, making sure his dad had gotten enough food before they settled into quiet, no sound but the gentle sounds of munching and scarfing up delicious food.

"How are you feeling Stiles?" Talia asked between mouthfuls.

Stiles swallowed quickly while nodding, "I'm doing okay."

"Then what was the panic attack in the other room?" his father asked.

Stiles rolled his eyes, "That's nothing really, I haven't had one in a long time and probably go away again. I have it under control."

Talia spoke gently, "Stiles, this isn't over. The man we took was a lackey, he didn't know more than the woman's name: Kate. She contacted him with a disposable cell phone and he never knew more than skin contact with the wolfsbane soaked weapons that she gave him, he didn't even know about the aconite that he was carting around. He knew he was after a wolf but he was a hired gun, nothing more. He didn't necessarily know he was fighting a wolf, just to attack whoever she was following. That was you, she's going to come back, it's the only thing that all the hunters agree on; that all omegas should die because of the power of wolf-birthing you have."

Stiles shrugged though he was trying to contain the shaking in his hands, feeling Derek and Ricky's hands each touch his legs in comfort. Stiles took a deep breath, "I'll stay with Derek and Ricky, stay close and not be too stupid."

Talia smiled serenely, "Well I shall be sure to send Otto and Laura as well, because though I love my son and you and Ricky, you seem unable to really stay out of trouble."

Stiles frowned but said nothing while his dad snorted in amusement. Stiles turned to glare at his dad for that but it seemed like it just created a partial chain reaction of snickers and giggles around the room. Stiles just went back to eating his food and letting the stories and conversation turn away from him and his inability to stay out of trouble.

Soon the meal came to an end, mostly because there was no more food. Talia stood and wiped her hands. "Well today was a very interesting day and I am hoping to keep the unplanned chaos to a minimum tomorrow. I am planning a run for tomorrow evening and then the next couple of days is going to be set aside for some friendly competitions such as tracking and so on. We shall tell you more about that in the next couple of days but for now, it would be fun to maybe put in a movie and just relax together for the evening. If you need some quiet time or so on, please do so but I would love to get the chance to truly spend time getting to know each of you."

With a quick clap of the alpha's hands, everyone was dismissed and everyone started cleaning up their plates and spots at the table before they headed off in different directions. Stiles smiled and clapped happily at the thought of chilling out all together and watching a movie together. He rushed to the kitchen and cleaned up his dishes before heading to the living room as Derek and Ricky followed close behind. Stiles took up residence in the middle of a comfy couch and his two mates quickly sat down on either side of him. Stiles grinned happily as he put his head down on Derek's lap, curling up on his side and flopping his feet and legs down on Ricky's lap. Both of his mates immediately started touching Stiles, Derek's hand running through Stiles hair while Ricky's hands rubbed gently along Stiles' leg and rubbing his feet gently.

Stiles settled into the utter joy of their touch while Laura put in a DVD and Stiles grinned when it started playing. Clearly it was Laura's show tonight because she had played a romantic comedy and though Laura was a hard-ass as far as Stiles could tell most of the time, it was believable that she would watch something like 27 Dresses. A bunch of the guys in the room groaned but Stiles just smiled and winked at his sister-in-law and watched as Ravyn grinned and shoved herself into the chair where Laura was sitting and the two of them started jabbering about the favorite parts. Stiles always like the leading lady when she called her sister out on the stage. He enjoyed watching romantic comedies, it was a guilty little pleasure that even his mates didn't know about yet. He glanced up as several others settled among the chairs surrounding the television, though Stiles frowned when he realized that Braedon and Shelby weren't there for now. He wondered if the Oseric couple was going to settle in with the rest of the wolves here? He understood that it was different for them but Stiles worried that they were never going to try to fit in here. It wouldn't bother Stiles except that it would hurt Ricky and he would move heaven and earth to see that not happen.

For now though he settled into the laughter and stupid drama and eventual happy ending inherent in rom coms, he wondered if his life was kind of like one, finding Derek and Ricky when he got to college, learning about the tri-omega and getting to keep them both. Stiles didn't know how got lucky enough but he didn't think all the good times and bad times were going to be done in a couple hours for a movie. Stiles knew they were still in the honeymoon season and there was going to be hard times a'comin especially since some hunter knew who he was now.

Derek kept rubbing his fingers into Stiles hair as the credits started rolling after the big happy ending. "You doing okay?" the alpha crooned.

Stiles nodded, looking up at Derek's face. "I'm fine Der."

Derek nodded and they stayed like that as the television was turned off and the conversations started up around the room again. "So we going for a run together tomorrow and this is the first time we are all going to run as a family," Laura said from her chair. Ravyn was still curled into Laura's hip, just sitting close to the other wolf and Stiles was glad to see the closeness between them. There was power in the pack that was forming here and the omega was glad to see it. Otto was sitting close by, not really being actively a part of the group but being present and he wondered about something. Stiles shifted off Derek's chest and kissed the alpha then turned quickly to kiss his beta as well before he walked away saying, "Be right back."

His mates shifted on the couch and Stiles watched for a second as Ricky settled into Derek's side and the girls gave a couple of shrieks and jumped at the open space and tugging Otto into the puppy pile as well. Stiles grinned as he walked out of the living room and found Talia, John and Melissa all sitting around the kitchen table. He could hear Scott and Alison talking in their room and Stiles smiled at the 'rents sitting at the table.

"Hey," he said with a careless wave.

"Good movie?" John asked with a smirk.

"Shut up Dad," Stiles said with a chuckle. "You know I have a disgusting love of romcoms."

John chuckled, "Yeah, you doing okay son?"

Stiles rolled his eyes, "I'm fine Dad, where is the Oserics?" he asked them before they had a chance to ask him about the quick flutter in his heartbeat that Ricky and Derek might be able to hear from the other room.

"In there room," Talia said, pointing up the stairs and Stiles walked away before he could be asked anymore heart stuttering questions that he might end up fibbing about. He ran up the stairs and down the hall to where the Oseric couple was staying, he knocked and heard when someone mumbled an assent. Stiles opened the door and walked in to find them sitting on the couch watching some movie, even a romcom and Stiles frowned. "We're watching movies downstairs, you couldn't join us instead of staying up here by yourself?" Probably not the greatest way to start the conversation with his most reticent in-laws but this was so not like pack dynamics, it was basically a slap in Talia's face as well as Derek and Stiles as Ricky's mates.

"Stiles, this is very strange for us. You have no right to tell us how to show up in our son's life or to this celebration," Ricky's mother stated calmly with an edge of annoyed rudeness.

Stiles moved across the room and turned off the TV with an angry flick of his hand on the side of the television, knowing how rude it was but finding he didn't really care. Shelby gasped in indignation and Braedon just waited, seemingly ready for this discussion. "I don't understand what its like where you live but here in the Hale pack, in the Stilinski pack, everything is about family. We spend time together when we can, when an omega and alpha mate and in this case Ricky as well, the mates' families spend time together so we can meld as a pack as best we can because a Soul Bond is something to hope and pray for, its something that is a gift and your son has one with me and Derek."

"You think we don't understand it?" Shelby asked.

"I think you are holding back, keeping yourself away from us. I don't understand why though? Don't you understand the joy and wonder in being a part of a close knit pack?"

Shelby shrugged, "I don't know if you understand the kind of struggle we are having with this relationship to which I only see two alternatives for my son."

"Something I don't agree with," Braedon chimed in but quieted when his wife glared at him. Braeden shrugged, clearly used to his wife's mulish attitude. Stiles waited to see what kind of future she was sure to see for her son even as he crossed his arms stubbornly, they could both play this game that was for sure.

"Option one: I believe either you and Derek or both will realize you have somehow glommed onto my son for some reason and you believe that he is a part of this weird three person relationship but its not going to last."

Stiles gasped, glaring even as she held her hand up and continued speaking.

"Or this is real and somehow that is going to be even worse for him. He won't be able to have children of his own, he will be thrown into your desperate journey to make life better somehow for the omegas and the kind of danger that's inherent in stirring the shit, especially in pack dynamics. You are getting two mates and so is Derek but really what is Garrick getting besides a good sex life?"

Stiles tapped his foot in annoyance; he waited to see if she was going to say anything else. When Shelby stayed silent, he waited some more all while he continued to glare at the woman. "How do you feel when you look at your husband?" Stiles asked, trying to go about this some other way besides anger and resentment.

Shelby turned and smiled at her husband, her eyes softening for a moment before she reclaimed her stoic resolve and stared at Stiles, "It's not the same thing so why would you ask about it?"

Stiles gestured wildly as he responded, flailing his arms, "But it is sort of."

Shelby glared at him, "The Soul Bond touches the wolf within, and it makes someone's love instinctual and deep, a base for everything you do in life. There is more than just the hard work and joy of love for the human. I fell in love with Braeden when I was human and when I was turned that love deepened but it never had any magical or instinctual aspect to it."

Stiles nodded, he'd read up a lot about turned wolves verses born and betas versus omegas and alphas. He walked over and knelt in front of the woman, taking her hands between his gently. She didn't pull away thankfully.

"Shelby, you and Braeden have a wonderful and loving relationship, please don't compare it to something you feel doesn't measure up in some way. A Soul Bond is different than a love like yours, which is strong in the hard work and the choice to keep fighting for it. A Soul Bond is instinct but it's so much more than that, we fight too but there is a magical aspect. I can't make you believe me when I say how much I love your son, apparently you believe that my Claiming bite is a mistake or something."

Shelby gasped and Stiles tightened his grip just enough to keep her touching him. He frowned up at her, staring at those dark blue eyes so like Ricky's that it made Stiles want to cry. "No, just listen to me, I can't promise we are never going to have hard times, that Ricky might never come to you and say we've broken each other's hearts because we're all that dramatic," Stiles chuckled and Braeden heaved a quick laugh as well. "The only thing I can promise you is that I am in love with your son, it broke my heart thinking I couldn't be with him before Derek showed a connection to Ricky as well. He completes us in a way that we cannot be alone. I need him in my life to geek out with me over some strange new knowledge or nerding out over a game we both like to play but its not just that, when I touch him or feel his hands on me it calms the nervous energy I always have. He's exhilarates me, he's so smart and beautiful and I don't understand why he wants to be with me and Derek sometimes but I won't give him up." His hands had slipped away from Shelby and he flopped backwards, wiping a little at the tears that were escaping his lashes.

Shelby and Braeden stayed quiet and Stiles stood and moved away from the beta couple and turned back at the door for a moment, "I hope you can learn to seek out this pack and I need to say one thing for your son right now. When you refuse to be a part of the proceedings within this pack, it hurts him and I would do anything to keep that from happening. That's not even counting the fact that you're also being incredibly rude and disrespectful of Talia Hale, who is not only an alpha but she's one of the few alphas that other alphas respect and yet you don't."

With that, Stiles walked out of the room and headed toward the bedroom he shared with his mates and slammed the door behind him, feeling the overwhelming desire to choke someone. He flopped down on the bed and rested a hand over his thundering heartbeat and tried to slow it. He couldn't believe he was so mad, didn't understand the completely alpha-like anger he was struggling with right now. He wanted to shift and use his claws, growl at anyone who thought they could hurt Ricky and then just as fast as the anger came it deflated in a rushing of breath leaving his body and Stiles was left with the thought that if Shelby believed that those were the only two ways for Ricky's life to end up and he wondered if Ricky thought that, even just a little. The sadness enveloped him in a wave that caught his breath and he pressed his hand even tighter into his chest, trying to alleviate the pain that suddenly made it hard to breath. He squeezed his fingers into his streaming eyes, trying to wipe away the evidence, the scent of saline wafting around him gently. He needed to get himself calmed down, try to get control of himself before he rejoined the others. He didn't want them to feel like he'd deserted them but Shelby was Ricky's mother and maybe she knew her son better than Stiles did and the beta was just trying to keep the status quo until everything fell apart.

He was standing up and pulling off his t-shirt as he wandered into the bathroom when the outer door opened and he ignored his mates as he pulled off the rest of his clothes, turned on the hot water and stepped under the stream as Derek and Ricky came into the bathroom. He scrubbed the scalding water into his skin and rubbed his eyes, hoping that he hadn't been broadcasting everything he'd gone through; the anger and the sadness but knew it was a false hope.

"Stiles?" Derek called gently.

"I know," Stiles growled fiercely and rinsed his hair quickly before he grabbed the soap, he might as well actually shower while he was in here. "I shouldn't have spoken to your parents Ricky, I'm sorry."

Ricky growled under his breath, "What did they say to you?"

Stiles rubbed at his face again in annoyance, why did he even say anything? Stiles groaned then spoke over the sound of the shower, "Your mom feels like Derek and I will suddenly fall out of love with you, as if it was never real or what could you possibly have in this relationship because you won't have children of your own and all you're going to get is a good sex life."

Derek's growl mixed deliciously with the sound of Ricky's snarling rumble, Stiles hated that his arousal jumped at the sound of his mates wanting to protect him from harm but he ignored it as he heard a door slam and reached out the grab a towel as he turned off the water. He pushed back the shower curtain as he wrapped the towel around himself then stepped into Derek's arms, grateful for the easy comfort from his alpha.


	5. One More Fight

**Chapter Five: One More Fight**

Ricky snarled as he left the bathroom and slammed out of their room and down the hall and slammed his open palm down on the room where his parents were staying and turned when he heard his sister, "Ricky?"

"Don't," Ricky snapped at his sister just as the door opened and he glared at his father as he pushed into the room and passed his father. "What the hell did you say to Stiles?" Ricky didn't wait for an answer, "How dare you!"

"Whoa!" Ravyn said when their mother continued to sit there and say nothing. Ricky took a deep breath and tried to calm down. His dad moved to stand behind the couch, united but separate, something that did not go unnoticed by everyone in the room.

"What did you say? You told him they were going to leave me, that this isn't real or this is somehow not going to be enough! Come on mom, how can you decide what my relationship is going to look like? How could you tell him that?"

His mother waited, a light shimmer of moisture in her blue gaze before she took a deep breath and stood, "You can't understand the scary concept of this relationship because you're in the middle of it. You could have children with a woman, you could find joy with someone else instead of being the perpetual third wheel of the Derek and Stiles show."

"Mom!" Ricky snarled, "You can have as many opinions as you want but you also have to get it through your head that you don't really know what we're like because you don't live with us. And you're not spending any time trying to see who we are now. Derek and Stiles treat me as an equal in our relationship, they do everything in their power to always let me know that I matter to them the same way they matter to each other. If you have no intention of finding a way to see what we are to each other, don't share your opinion about it, especially to Stiles. He's incredibly sensitive and he worries too much, don't make it worse."

Shelby stared down at her hands for a moment and heaved a sigh, "I don't know what its like to have a Soul Bond, there is no way for me to understand what its like to know love at that level but there is nothing in the world that is going to keep me from worrying about my little boy."

Ricky started to speak but she just held a hand up for him to stay quiet.

"I will make an effort to keep my unfounded opinions to myself, I will make an effort to be a part of this pack and learn what I need to about you and your mates. I can't stop worrying about you though."

Ricky took a deep breath and allowed the anger inside him to release and disperse. His shoulders slumped a little at the truth in his mother's plan to seek out the answers she'd been unwilling to find previously. He slumped into a nearby chair and everyone stayed silent for a minute until a clap startled them, Ricky turned as Ravyn started a slow clap and grinned at him obnoxiously.

"Wow brother, I'm glad to see you fighting for what you love and believe in, you were always so diminutive when we were kids and easy to overpower in any issue," the whole time Ravyn kept up with the clapping until he glared at her and she stuttered into silence. Then his little sister turned to their parents as spoke, "This is a great pack to be a part of, really. I know we have a pack back home but they don't come over and spend time with us, they don't offer their support in the ways of born wolves and I like it here. I wouldn't mind really getting involved with the Hale pack, they are good weres."

Shelby nodded at that because they all knew it to be true, despite the losses that Derek's family had suffered they were willing to open their home and heart to the Oseric pack and Ricky's parents hadn't been very open to receiving it.

"Fresh start tomorrow morning?" Shelby asked her son gently.

Ricky nodded, leaned down and kissed his mother's cheek gently before he shook his father's hand and pressed a quick kiss to Ravyn's head then walked out. It was late enough that they'd all said good night to everyone downstairs and all the beta wanted to do was curl up next to Derek and Stiles and sleep off some of the emotional turmoil of the day. Having his parents at odds with the rest of the pack as well as his mates was running Ricky into the ground and he needed to sleep it off in the presence of his mates.

He walked out of his parents' suite and back towards his own, walking through the door and scenting the tears and sadness before he even looked around the room to find Stiles wrapped up in Derek's arms in the bed. The omega was shaking a little from the soft sobs coming from him and his chest was bare, as if he just couldn't continue to get dressed after the soft pajama pants he was wearing were put on. Ricky crossed the room quickly and climbed into bed to press a gentle kiss to the side of Stiles' face. "Hey little man, she shouldn't have said it and you don't have to believe it. I'm right here because I want to be."

Stiles nodded spastically, almost dislodged Ricky from the omega's body.

"He thinks that she might have a point," Derek whispered gently.

Ricky sighed and groaned a little, knowing that what he said to his mother early was the truth, Stiles may like to rush into things all the time but he cared a lot about people, especially Ricky and Derek and he was desperate not to hurt them. He nudged Stiles until the smaller wolf settled onto his back, showing the shine of tears still blurring his whiskey brown eyes and Ricky cooed a little, gently wiping at the tears.

"Stiles, I love being mated to you and I love being mated with Derek. I am not the third wheel in this relationship and you have never made me feel that way. You might make mistakes but that's not one of them. Let go of whatever my mother said because I don't feel that way at all."

"But what about children? You could have children with a human," Stiles whispered.

Ricky frowned down at his omega, "Are you going to tell our children that I am not one of their parents?" he asked gently, keeping a loving grip on Stiles' cheek.

Stiles shook his head a little; "You would be a parent as much as Derek and I, we would be a team like we always are. You would love them whether they were yours biologically or not, right?"

"Right," Ricky said with a resolute nod. He smiled and pressed his lips down on Stiles' mouth for a slow and loving kiss. When he came up for air he whispered straight into his omega's lips, "Let it go little man. I'm in love with you and Derek, no matter how weird we look on the surface, no matter how many ways we should be screwed from the get-go. No matter what, okay?"

Stiles smiled shakily, "Okay."

Derek nudged them and both mates turned to their alpha, "Me too you know, I agree with all the above. We're together no matter what."

"No matter what," Stiles whispered back and they settled down again, heaving a sigh and falling into an exhausted sleep, Ricky left wondering what the next bit of drama would be on this family vacation.


	6. Tradition and Truth

p class="MsoNormal"strong style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"Chapter Six: Tradition and Truth/strong/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"a name="OLE_LINK24"aa name="OLE_LINK23"/aspan style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek watched as Ricky and Stiles slept on, he enjoyed watching their faces when they weren't drawn in stress. Stiles was still tucked down between his two mates and Ricky was wrapped around Stiles' other side. Derek wondered how Ricky could be so loving and strong with Stiles when he was just as exhausted from the drama his family was bringing about. Derek's wolf growled and shifted beneath the surface of his skin, trying to push through and make some kind of statement to everyone to stop hurting his mates. They were his to protect, they still belonged to their parents but Ricky and Stiles were his responsibility to protect, and they were his joy as well. Derek needed everything else to just stop!/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"With that thought Derek leaned over and pressed his lips to Stiles' forehead and then pressed a kiss into Ricky's knuckles before he got up and out of the bed. He slipped on a shirt and socks, since he was already wearing soft pajama bottoms. He slipped out of his bedroom and walked downstairs, scenting the beginning scents of cooking meat and the aroma of fresh cut fruit, strawberries and melon. He walked into the kitchen to find Laura cooking, she was the resident shopper and chef at home, able to cook for great groups of wolves and people and it was not a position that Derek ever wanted though it was considered one of great importance within a pack family.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Hey there, thank you for your service Den Mama," Derek said as he sat down at the island. Laura looked up and smiled as she continued cooking meat and eggs at the stove. Derek helped himself to a piece of melon and placed it on his tongue, tasting the flavors and moaning. Living on the campus made getting organic fruit much more difficult so this was a treat he didn't get very often.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""How is Ricky and Stiles doing after last night?" Laura asked gently.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek shrugged, "Stiles went to bed crying his eyes out and Ricky looks like death warmed over. I don't like this at all."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Laura reached over and took Derek's hand gently for a moment, "I know Der, but its something that you're going to have to deal with. You can't always keep them from hurt and harm but you're doing a great job little brother."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek smiled at his older sister, it was strange that an alpha could be so much more like an omega or a beta but Laura had always been the strong support his mother and Derek always seemed to need. It was why the Den Mama position worked so well for her, she could be an integral part of the household without needing to becoming the enforcer which Peter gladly served as in the Hale pack, under the radar of course but then the legality of Were society was quite different then that of human society.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""I know I can't put them in a bubble and protect them from anything in the world that would attempt to hurt them but this is family that's hurting them this time. Maybe we should just forget about this holiday and just go back to campus."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Laura shook her head and exclaimed just as Derek was finished speaking, "No Derek! Mom has been so excited about this time with you and your mates, you are the first of us to mate and she desperately needs to be a part of your relationship."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek sighed, knowing his sister was right and if he took Stiles and Ricky away from all this they would never forgive Derek. He could still feel his wolf scratching at the surface. Rolling his shoulders, attempting to rid himself of the discomfort, Laura jiggled his hand and Derek looked up at her. span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Why don't you go for a jog, get rid of all this tension and let the rest of the house wake up?"span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek sighed and nodded; it was a good idea to release some of the extra energy swimming around inside, just making him so much more frustrated with the situation. So he took a bit of toast from his sister and wandered quietly back to his room and grabbed his running gear before leaving, only stopping to check in that his mates were still sleeping before he changed in another of the upstairs bathrooms and tied his running shoes before taking off out the back door. He didn't pay any attention to the world outside of the path he took through the surrounding woods, just grateful for the freedom of the air sifting through his thick hair, past his ears in a slight whistle and the freshness of the wind as he moved. It was wonderful to be here within the trees that he grew up in before the fire. He'd spent hours with his father in these woods, learning what herbs and plants were good for him and which were not. He'd spent many countless days fighting and turning, so his shift would be effortless and painless with his uncle Peter. And his mother, Talia had spent much of her free time in private lessons with each of her children, teaching them the beauty of being a good and strong alpha, how to be someone her betas and pack could trust, both human and were because before the fire there had been others who were mated to humans, whose children were human. His family may have escaped but the Hale home fire was only the last attack on the Hale clan family before Derek and his remaining parent and siblings moved away. It was the crappy part of being a well known pack in a small town.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek kept running as he wondered about the cousins and uncles and aunts he lost in all the hunter attacks that came before the house fire. Even then, inside the Hale house wasn't just Derek's family, they just happened to be lucky enough to escape the house then also escape the wolfsbane bullets and arrows set loose.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek felt the howling of his wolf under the surface, crying out for the loss of his father, but also the visiting family they'd been hosting. Mostly made up of turned wolves and humans they weren't able to keep themselves alive and Talia had done what she could but was desperate after the loss of her husband to keep her children safe.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"And now they were growing again, with Derek's mates and Talia must be terrified and excited all at the same time. With that thought, Derek stumbled to a stop and he heaved in a few deep breaths and shook off the deep and disturbing thoughts before something hit him from behind and took him to the ground. Derek flipped quickly, with a growl and faced off, his teeth elongating and his claws escaping at the tips of his fingers before he realized it was Shelby looking anxious and pained from their collision.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Sorry about that, I wasn't paying attention. I didn't mean to interfere with your run, I was just getting away for a little while this morning. I run every day."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek smiled as nicely as he could, he still didn't know everything that happened last night only that this woman hurt both his mates in the span of a single day. He nodded and turned away to continue his path into the woods but Shelby reached out and touched his arm. Derek snapped his head back around and snarled, "What?" his eyes flashed red as well before he pulled his wolf back under the surface once more.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby held her hands up and away from the angry alpha, her hands open and palms laid out before him then she tilted her neck in submission. The show of her neck might have brought his wolf under control but it just pissed Derek off even more, "What Shelby? What more do you want from me? I have watched you deny my family and my pack, my love for your son and our damn Bond as well! What?"span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby dropped her arms and her shoulders did as well in defeat and her eyes shimmered with tears, Derek didn't feel any sympathy for her though. "I didn't mean to do those things, not really. I just worry so much for my son. I have always hoped that growing up beta, he would have the chance to do all that he wants and fall in love later in life like I did with Braeden because it's all we know and all we crave. The power of the Soul Bond is more crutch than blessing to me, something that removes choice from love."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Do you imagine love is about choice?" Derek said with a bitter laugh.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby scoffed, "No, but I imagine that my boy is deeply troubled with the fact that his wolf is in more control than his human mind and heart, there is nothing more disturbing to a beta than that, we have the control that alphas and omegas fight for. And now this Bond has stolen one of the few things that are powerfully good about being a beta with this three-way bond. I do not say these things to prove to you that it is wrong, Garrick loves you and Stiles and there is nothing I can do but accept and love him. I am asking for you to understand that I love my son and I am asking you to please know that need I have to protect him."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek growled at her, "It is no longer your responsibility, your honor to do so. I love your son, you have been told this more frequently than should be necessary but I am his alpha and his mate. It is my honor and privilege to protect him from harm and you are doing harm to him!" Derek shouted, his voice bouncing off the nearby trees.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby flinched in response and Derek rolled the anger and resentment out of his shoulders once more, finding his teeth elongated again. She sighed heavily and swiped the moisture from just beneath her eyes before it slipped from the home in her lashes. Derek watched and waited, wondering if she was going to continue this vein of conversation. "I know I hurt him, I know I hurt Stiles and I hurt you as well. I know this is no longer my point in the world, the moment my son mated and Claimed you and Stiles was the moment he was no longer mine to protect. I guess I somehow thought that if I still had an opinion then I would still matter to him. I know what strong alpha packs are like, how mates of an alpha no longer belong to the family they were born into, they belong to their alpha's pack."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek frowned, "You turned betas really need to get out more, its true that Stiles and Ricky belong in my pack but Ricky has the right to always be a part of your family and I would never take him from you, I do demand that you stop hurting him with your opinions."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby nodded, "He asked the same last night. I will apologize to Stiles today if he will speak to me."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek took a menacing step forward but pulled back a little, "Don't hurt him again, or I will rip out your throat—with my teeth," Derek whispered though the words shifted through the air easily to the woman who nodded. span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"She took a deep breath and nodded, "I would deeply appreciate another chance with you and your family as well."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek nodded and looked around him, "Would you like to run together for a little while?" he asked.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Shelby smiled, "I would be pleased to do so."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"They took off in the same direction, each of them trying to run faster than the other before slowing down when one got to far ahead. Derek found himself smiling at the older woman's tenacity and strength, especially for a turned wolf. Soon they were turning back towards the house and walking up the back porch, drenched in sweat and laughing at the antics they shared. He found the strong scent of breakfast still in the kitchen and walked towards the kitchen when Shelby veered off towards the rooms upstairs. Derek found his mother and his Uncle Peter in the kitchen and another, slightly younger red head there as well.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek frowned when she caught sight of him and walked over to hold her hand out, wrist up in deference but Derek just waved to her since he understood better than most that he didn't like when other people touched his mates. She was cheerful and her smile was toothy and her wolf was showing just a little when she spoke, "Hey you must be Derek. I'm Carmen Waters, I'm your uncle's mate."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek smiled, "Welcome to the crazy Hale family." Derek shifted his gaze to his uncle, "Have fun with the whole entrapment of mating thing."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Carmen frowned at Derek then turned just in time to see Peter's face turn crimson in a blush before he slipped a finger across his throat in a universal 'you're dead' motion but smiled at his new omega, "Ignore him my beautiful sweet Carmen."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Oh no, I think I won't ignore him," Carmen said as she crossed her hands over her chest and tapped a foot in a way that clearly demanded an answer and it better be truthful if Peter wished to retain function of his balls.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""I may have said some unfair and unkind things to Derek when he took his omega as a mate, as well as a beta. You shall meet them later. I only wish to move beyond it but I may have referred to the Soul Bond in terms close to that of a prison or biological imperative with no meaning other then whelping strong weres."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Carmen glared at her mate, "And that is all he was to his mate? That's all I am to you?" she demanded sharply and Derek just turned and watched his uncle flounder and his mother tried not to laugh in the face of her brother's struggle. "Well my work here is done, have my mates been down yet?" Derek asked.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Talia shook her head, "Actually surprised, they asked for some food to be brought up to them. I made you a plate as well." Derek took the plate and eating utensils before he turned and walked upstairs, already digging into the sausage links on the plate, normally they would be eating some sort of meat like venison or deer that hadn't been changed by machines and the like but he didn't mind, they were feeding a lot of wolves for the weeks they were together. span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"He nudged open the door and found Stiles curled up against the headboard with a full plate of food on a tray in front of him. Stiles' head was pressed into his kneecaps gently and Ricky was pacing the floor next to the bed. Both his mates looked over when he opened the door and Derek scented the anxiety in the room and felt in the back of his mind where the bond resided as their relief overwhelmed the more negative vibes in the room.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Why didn't you go downstairs and have breakfast with everyone?" Derek asked them both gently as he put down his food and grabbed his clothes before he walked over to the bed to press a kiss into Stiles' temple when the omega jerked him close, almost upending the food into the bedspread, only because of his faster reflexes was he able to keep the food from flying all over the surface of their sheets and blankets, not to mention Stiles and Derek.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""What's going on here?" Derek asked as he pressed Stiles in close to his side, rubbing a hand up and down Stiles' bare arm.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Stiles had a panic attack when he woke up, something he heard or because you weren't here. I don't know but I couldn't calm him by myself, where were you?" Ricky demanded, stressed anger coloring his tone.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek sighed; holding his hand out and Ricky moved around the bed and shoved his head under the alpha's shoulder. It was probably just as uncomfortable for Ricky as it was for Derek but he really didn't care when the subtle shiver that Ricky and Stiles were both giving evened out and calmed under Derek's hands.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""I'm sorry, I went for a jog and ran into Shelby. We talked and cleared the air a little. I should have been here for you both. I'm so sorry, please forgive me?" he asked.span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Stiles jerked his head in a nod and Ricky followed suit, both of them tilting their face to suck in a few deep breaths of Derek's scent before Stiles laughed, "You reek Der, go shower or something."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek chuckled and Ricky laughed, throwing his head back and the tension in the room released. He hugged his mates tightly, pulled the plate of food closer to Stiles and pressed a bit of warm bacon against his omega's lips and the smaller man took it and started chewing with a goofy smile before he pushed Derek away from him. Ricky got up with Derek and the alpha turned to the beta and kissed the other man on the lips, "You did good Gari."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"The beta shrugged and turned slightly away but Derek gripped his chin gently, "You didn't fail him Garrick, sometimes its about the both of us. That's all this was, you stayed with him and kept him safe. You did good."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Ricky smiled, "I believe you Der."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;"Derek grinned, kissed Ricky one more time before the beta shoved him away, "Go shower then we'll go rejoin the rest of the family for the family Christmas drama."span/span/p  
>p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK23;"span style="mso-bookmark: OLE_LINK24;""Done," Derek said and walked away with a smile still plastered on his lips.span/span /p 


	7. Family That Runs Together

**Chapter Seven: Family That Runs Together**

Stiles hopped around on the back porch with Derek and Ricky standing next to him and he was incapable of standing still, they were going running! As a family and he couldn't wait, thankfully everyone was there including Peter and Carmen who seemed to forgive some blunder from this morning that Derek was snickering over. Stiles knew all the women were going to shift just inside the door and then they were going to race out, to then be followed by the guys. For the most part, Weres' didn't really care about modesty especially during a Moon Run but this was a little different especially with so many new families shoving themselves together. Inside was Shelby and Ravyn who were pairing with one of the Hales' since they didn't know the area very well until they could at least make it back to the house on their own but also Melissa and Alison had been asked to join and were preparing with Talia as well as Laura, Cora and Carmen too. Carmen of course would stick close to Peter until she learned the area better as far as Stiles could tell. She and Peter had only recently met and Stiles knew they hadn't even gone through their first Heat yet because they didn't smell like one smell, but the pre-bonding was definitely going well for them it seemed.

The guys were all standing around, pulling off outerwear and getting down to their boxers or shorts. Stiles and his mates were standing on the porch with Stiles' dad, Scott and Braeden. Otto and Peter were already running around the back yard, trying to alleviate some of the tension that was running high from having so many revved up wolves in the same space.

Then like there was some unspoken command everyone started shifting, falling easily into their wolf forms and Stiles was suddenly looking through the very different eyes of his wolf counterpart and his heart sang when Derek rubbed the side of his muzzle into Stiles' neck and Ricky did it as well. Stiles could feel and hear the deep whine his wolf body emitted without mental permission, just a release of happy in a sound then the girls were taking off past them and were gone, the males yipped and pranced as they all took off together. Stiles focused on the run, giving over to this wolf who knew they were safe between his mates, who were pressing in on both sides of him. As the Pack raced through the forest with wolfy abandon, Stiles could see others moving around them, scenting who they were easily despite their shifted form. They were family after all, no matter their form. Nothing could ever truly compare to this for the omega, especially after years of suppressants, which didn't stop the shift, but they did curtail some of his senses, even in his other form. Plus being an omega meant that Stiles hadn't gone running all that much since puberty struck and now here he was, running with mates and his Pack and it was so big and beautiful as they all bounced off trees and raced through the Preserve which housed the Hale House as well as enough acreage to run them ragged before they returned to the house.

During the whole run, Ricky and Derek never moved away from Stiles and he could sense the intense concentration of his mates, though Stiles wished they could relax he understood that with a hunter in town gunning for Stiles specifically, it would be impossible to ask them or expect them to calm down. Stiles was constantly sniffing out for scents that didn't belong in the forest but he never noticed anything, thankful for the time away from the house. It was something they all needed, sometimes Pack dynamics and bonds could only be born of running together and knowing they were a unit and that they would need to trust one another. Stiles could feel his wolf settling, not only because his mates were with him but because he dad was here, his best friend as well and especially because the Oseric family was with them every step of the way. Stiles could see Shelby, a dark and stunning wolf though it wasn't quite the lustrous black of Derek and Talia who stood as the tallest among them all. Scott's brown wolf form was slightly shorter and Stiles' father; a similar red gold that Stiles was in his form, was slightly smaller as well though stood proudly an inch or so over Scott at the withers. Stiles knew his mental acuity was trained on his wolf right now but he could understand the hierarchy of power that was happening in wolf form, where the voice of the humans were silenced in the face of the raw power and instinct of the wolf. Talia was the strength of the Hale pack, despite her loss of not only her omega but her strongest beta as well. Derek did not kowtow to anyone besides her, standing firm in the face of Peter's alpha arrogance though the timber wolf that Stiles knew was his uncle-by-mating was slightly smaller than Derek's black form. The betas of the group, though a much smaller number tended to circle the perimeter, to see to the protection of the others and Stiles was surprised to see that Ravyn's wolf form was a smaller replica of her brother, that black brown coat but her size would distinguish her an omega but Ricky had been sure of her alpha status, especially since she had the attitude to match. It would be interesting to know if she was hiding something from her parents, it was a rarity for betas and turned wolves to birth an omega but it wasn't impossible.

All of these little experiences and observations spun around inside Stiles, making him think and pulling him from the delicate sensation of the run but just as enjoyable. He would be pleased to know so much more about his knew in-laws than their human counterparts could ever say, this was just another way for him to know them, the wolf was at the heart of them and it pleased Stiles that after all the dram they'd all had the Oseric family were here putting themselves out in front of the Hale pack for all to see and they seemed genuinely happy to do so.

Stiles was so wrapped up in his pack and his observations of them that he didn't notice they were turning back until they were almost to the house. He gave a happy and tired yip, which threw his snout into the air, and he scented something slight and stalled causing Derek and Ricky to stumble to a stop in front of him. They turned, tilting their heads in question and a whimpered yip escaped Stiles as he looked around the area of the house and wondered what brought him to a screeching halt to begin with. He didn't notice the scent that he'd been so sure was there only seconds before, a slight fragrance mixed with the bitter painful of wolfsbane, as if someone crushed it into powder and put traces of it into a perfume or something. Stiles shook his wolf head with a snort of disbelief as well as a bit of getting the scent out of his nose. That was to crazy to think, having wolfsbane on the skin; even slight amounts could still make someone sick. Ricky whimpered a little and Stiles shook off the feeling, there was nothing there anymore. He chuffed out a quick sound to his mates and they all walked towards the house where everyone else was shifting and getting dressed again. Talia walked out of the house as Stiles and his mates walked up to the house and shifted. She averted her gaze but Stiles knew she was talking to him as soon as she opened her mouth, "What was that?"

"I don't know, smelled something weird with a barely there hint of wolfsbane. It was weird, there then gone," he spoke even as he picked up his boxers and slipped them on followed by his pants and red sweater.

"Did you scent anything Derek or Ricky?" Talia asked, Stiles shifted his gaze to the alpha as he wondered if she just didn't believe him or if she was just looking for more information. Derek gave a grunt in answer and Stiles looked over to his alpha who was giving him one of those eyebrow-centric looks that asked him to give his mother a break. Then Talia spoke up, "I think I scented something as well but there was so little of it and I didn't even get the hint of Wolfsbane so I was hoping a few of us could maybe put the components of the scent together. We will have to be aware if the hunter is ballsy enough to come onto the preserve, even when we weren't at the house."

Stiles nodded and they all walked inside to rejoin the rest of the family, Shelby and Braeden were sitting in one of the couches, curled in close to one another with smiles and sleepy chuckles coming from them. They had rosy cheeks and Ravyn was bounding around the room back in human form with Cora, happy to share in the exuberance of the post-run. Running with pack, Stiles knew, affected everyone but sometimes it had different responses such as sexual energy, or the coma like Otto was experience as he curled up on the sofa on the other side of the room even when the girls attempted to pull him up. Stiles enjoyed the moment, of seeing what each of his pack members were like though he knew from how much Derek was touching him and Ricky's nose was almost plastered against the back of his neck know that they were standing still. Peter and Carmen apparently had already disappeared and Stiles snickered at that, though they were pre-bonding so spending as much time together making out or getting it on was a good thing. Stiles knew Carmen was probably coming off some sort of suppressant so much like Stiles; they would have to wait till Heat to complete their bond. Stiles on the other hand waved off the rest of the family and walked up the stairs with Derek and Ricky close behind. One of them grabbed Stiles at the top of the stairs and pushed him against the nearest wall and Stiles grinned when he realized Derek was pressing against him the surface and suddenly the alpha's hot mouth was pressing over his and Stiles moaned into the hot cavern before he shoved Derek away from him and the alpha tripped back a step and the omega leapt forward and his mate caught him easily. Within seconds Ricky was pushing open the bedroom door in front of them and slammed it behind them. Stiles dropped to the floor and quickly jerked his sweater back off and watched his mates as they sinuously stripped off their shirts and Stiles took a moment to truly appreciate the beauty of both his lovers.

Derek's dark hair and fantastic stubble as well as the well defined muscles next to the subtler strength of Ricky. They weren't the same but they were both so beautiful in their own way. "You guys are so perfect."

Derek grinned, "Not as perfect as you," the alpha whispered. Stiles blushed and then stumbled back towards the bed and flopped down to sit on the side, the other two mates stalked over to the other side of the room with feral looking grins but there was nothing to be scared about, these were his mates and they were incapable of harming him.

Derek leaned his knee into the bed next to Stiles' thigh. Stiles smiled as he looked over to Ricky and reached his hand out to pull both his mates down for some bonding time of their own. With Talia in charge and Christmas right around the corner, they had to use their private times whenever the opportunity arose.


	8. Mates' First Christmas

**Chapter Eight: Mates' First Christmas**

**Author's Note: **MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! I am so glad I was able to get this out today, I pushed back the drama specifically so we could just have some pack feels and mate fluff, we shall see where the rest of the vacation is going, they still have about a week and a half before they should head back to campus, so what sort of trouble can they get into. I am so grateful to every COMMENT and follow AND favorite. Please please comment if you can because they are like crack and I hate withdrawals. ;)

Ricky awoke to the sound of quiet singing of Christmas songs and wondered where the music was coming from as he stretched, bumping into Stiles on one side and Derek on the other. The past few days had been an amazing adventure of learning each other and spending time together. Talia had truly gone the extra mile, planning games and foot races, as well as a secret Santa gift exchange which happened the night before, Ricky ended up with some sort of ancient bound journal from Peter and the beta couldn't help but be surprised that these people had learned enough about him to know the smell of old paper and the texture was one of those things that made him stupid happy, besides Stiles and Derek anyway. It seemed that his mother and father had finally thawed when it came to the extended family they just became a part of. After that happened, Ricky had been able to release the tension in his shoulders and everything else just fell into place. Ricky found himself reading and chatting with Talia in the evening about any manner of subject, he also loved spending time with John Stilinski because the father of his beloved omega was sarcastic and intelligent. John was a good listener and all he cared about was Stiles' happiness so he didn't care who Ricky and Derek were as long as the two guys were keeping his son happy. Ricky sat through card games, varying kinds as well as board games and movies in the evening but today was going to be different. There were presents under the massive tree to be unwrapped then there was going to be a brunch before they just spent some time together. Ricky smiled at the thought.

Ricky shifted again and Stiles grumbled as he shifted closer, pressing his wiry body into the beta's side. Ricky wrapped a hand around Stiles waist and pulled him even closer just as Derek's arm draped over both of them and pulled both mates closer to the alpha. Ricky looked over to see Derek's dark green gaze on him and watched as the color shifted to the deep alpha red for a second before shifting back. Ricky couldn't help the hitch in his breathing at the sight of the alpha red because it meant Derek wanted them like he always did. Ricky could also scent the lust and love in the air, which always surrounded him when he was with his mates and it was a scent he would never get sick of.

"Merry Christmas Gari," Derek whispered and as if he was struck by lightning Stiles snapped upright jarring both of his mates and he bounced where he was sitting before he struggled to shove the blanket off of him, all the while kicking it off Derek and Ricky as well.

"Christmas!" he shouted with childlike excitement.

"Good morning Stiles. Merry Christmas." Derek and Ricky both said at the same time, which garnered another giggle from their omega. Stiles flipped over and leaned down to smack a wet and loud kiss on Derek's lips them Ricky before he jumped up from the bed. Ricky leaned over and pressed his lips to the alpha's open mouth for a deep kiss that could have lasted far longer but there were suddenly the pounding of happy feet outside the room and Ricky got out of bed as Derek yawned and got up as well. There was nothing that was going to stop them from this crazy amazing day and there was no way Stiles was going to miss any part of the festivities despite the fact that the omega could be sitting on their bed making out with the two men who loved him impossibly much.

"Come on slow pokes!" Stiles said with a laugh as he pulled on a t-shirt with some superhero emblazoned across the front, though it wasn't one of Ricky's areas of nerddom. Ricky slipped on a shirt as well while Derek did the same just as Stiles threw open their bedroom door and raced down the hall. Ricky held out his hand and Derek happily linked his fingers with the beta before they followed Stiles at a much more sedate pace and walked into the living room where the large tree had been decorated by everyone a couple days before. There were tons of brightly wrapped presents overflowing from the space beneath and Ricky smiled at the prospect of opening presents but honestly getting to see Stiles in this circumstance, after such a long semester at school it was here that he got to see Stiles truly calm and happy. He was always happy with Derek and Ricky but the drama of being around other people had always left the omega with an overlaying sense of tension. Then there was all the fear about other omegas out there that he was trying to keep from getting hurt even worse so this moment, here watching Stiles' face get lit by the multi-colored lights of the tree and the joy he could barely contain soaked into Ricky's memory banks as one of those moments that would stay with him forever.

Stiles had taken up residence on the big couch and Derek and Ricky moved to join him there, smiling at Cora who was relaxing in a nearby armchair with a book in her hand, clearly excited but contained but then it was a Hale thing to be intensely contained with their emotions. Laura was sitting in one of the other couches and Ravyn was sitting next to her, Ricky smiled at his little sister who smiled in return. His parents were sitting at the dining table, drinking coffee and reading some papers. Ricky smiled and waved to them as well. The rest of the Hales could be heard in the kitchen, Peter and Talia arguing about something silly in the kitchen as well as Carmen. Stiles was looking around, obviously looking for someone when Ricky heard John and Melissa join the conversation in the kitchen and the omega resettles happily especially when Scott and Alison walk in from the other room.

Ricky watched as Stiles got up and walked over to Scott and the best friends hugged tightly, Stiles shoving his nose into Scott's neck for a moment and Ricky knew he was getting that pack smell into his nose, Scott was always going to be Stiles' best friend and Ricky was glad to see that the other alpha had learned enough to let go of the judgment about Stiles and his mates. This school break had done something to Scott, given him clarity he hadn't had before.

"Merry Christmas Stiles," Scott whispered before he separated from the omega and gripped Alison close to his side before they all resettled on the floor or in the various chairs and couches around the room.

All the missing adults rejoined the younger generation in the living room and then Talia was settling herself in front of the tree with deliberation. "I would imagine that you want to do presents first then eat a brunch later," it wasn't even a question.

Talia started handing presents out, piling small and large boxes on each persons lap till everyone had a small pile. Talia clapped her hands as the last gift was allocated then everyone immediately started ripping into their presents, sending gift-wrappings flying around like fur flying after a hunt. Ricky ripped into his presents as well, finding a fantasy book he was hoping to get from Talia leaving him curious as to how she knew. There was also a set of pens that would make writing a dream from his father and mother. There was a book bag from his sister but it wasn't until he opened the package from Stiles that he felt his heart stall in his chest for a split second, Stiles had found him a magazine, a reader's digest sort of thing, that used a lot of werewolf writers and he had a year long blank offer to turn in submissions in. He sighed happily and leaned over to press his lips to the omega in a deep and wet kiss, only pulling back when other people started giving catcalls over their PDA. Ricky pulled back, "Thank you Stiles."

The omega gave a sappy smile before he turned back to his gifts as well. He was about to open the package from the beta so he watched. Stiles ripped through the packaging to find a small rectangular box, which Stiles opened to find a card giving him an all access pass to the best virtual archive databases in the state and Stiles squealed happily and Ricky snickered at the response. Stiles did love a good search engine and really loved having access to as much information as possible. Stiles threw his arms over Ricky's shoulders for a quick hug then the beta turned back to the last present in his lap, the one from Derek. He opened the packaging and found an old leather bound book and frowned as he tilted it to the side only to find his great grandfather's name. He turned to Derek who was just smiling at Ricky. The beta got up from his spot and climbed into Derek's lap and hugged the alpha, "Thank you," he whispered with feeling. "You don't know how important this kind of thing is to my family." Derek smiled and nodded, wiping away at the moisture clinging to the underside of Ricky's eyes.

He leaned down and pressed his lips to Derek's mouth in a gentle kiss before he turned to see the necklace Derek found for Stiles and how pleased the omega was by it. Derek was holding the paint job kit that Ricky found for him and there was also it looked like an offer to use a nearby mechanic's shop to work on the Camaro. Ricky smiled over at Stiles and then they turned and watched as the last presents were opened and the thrashing sounds of the room quieted down and they were left with showing their goods to everyone else.

Talia rose and looked around the room, smiling though her contentment was tinged with sadness as well, "I would have you know that after the loss of the Hale family, from losing Cordelia after Cora was born, then losing Arthur as well. There is nothing to describe the loss of loved ones but I know that they would both be happy knowing that we have come home to Beacon Hills, even if it is only for a visit. They would be happy to know that their children were alive and happy, loved and good. There is another strength now though, Derek has taken his mates and we have invited their families into the Hale pack, also bringing Scott, Alison and Melissa. I am pleased to see my pack happy and my house so full of happy laughter. But as my eldest son and the first to take a mate, I would give this house to Derek, Garrick and Stiles as a gift to start their lives together."

Ricky gasped and looked back at Derek, since he was still sitting on the alpha's lap. There were tears in Derek's eyes, happy and bittersweet ones. He nudged Ricky off his lap and he happily went so he moved to pull Stiles into his arms as Derek walked across the room and hugged his mother, whispering against her throat, "Thank you Mama, it is a great honor to call this place our home."

Stiles and Ricky both nodded enthusiastically when Talia looked over at them. Ricky hugged Stiles again, then pressed his lips into the side of the omega's head. Derek rejoined them on the couch after a short quiet conversation that everyone pretended they couldn't hear about getting the chance to not start over but truly move on.

Ricky picked up the book written by his kin one more time, knowing that his excitement was leaking off in his scent. He couldn't wait to see what the book had in store for him, wondered what kind of opinions his great grandfather might have about everything. He couldn't wait. After presents, everyone started cleaning up the massive tornado of wrapping paper around the room while Melissa, Ravyn and Cora walked into the kitchen to start cooking. Laura had done most of the work already, being the Hale Den Mother but she was still sitting in the armchair looking through a cookbook she received from someone and Ricky could scent her happiness in the gift. Ricky shoved his handfuls of garbage into the large bag that Derek was holding when the scent of warming meat permeated into the room. Pretty soon they were all sitting around the table, passing bowls and platters of ham, eggs and fresh fruit. There was enough to feed an army, or a Pack and Ricky sat back and enjoyed the happy quiet in the room. There was definitely sounds of eating, snarling and munching that was a lot like an actual pack of wolves but they all used their utensils and kept the stealing to a minimum. Derek was sitting in between Stiles and Ricky for this meal so Ricky reached over and fed a little melon to his alpha who hummed in appreciation and Ricky sighed happily at the sound.

Feeding mates was just another instinct that came without mental thought, he wanted to be sure his mate would have what he needed. He wanted to feed Stiles too and he'd gotten to the point because Stiles and Derek had shown him what answering his instincts without thinking less of himself. Before the instincts overwhelming his human mind had bothered Ricky for a lot of reasons, one being the instinct to kill for his loved ones but now, he trusted Derek and Stiles to respect his mind as much as his instincts. He reached down and twisted the ring on his finger for a minute pleased with the warmth of his body had seeped into the metal along with their scent.

"Okay, now that we have some new toys and have fed our bellies, maybe we should consider what we are going to do with the rest of the day. We could watch some classic Christmas movies, such as The Christmas Story or something."

Suddenly Stiles was bouncing in his chair at Talia's words, "Oooh I love that movie!"

Talia grinned, "That's one for Story, anyone else have an opinion?"

Everyone quickly agreed to some classic Christmas with the tale of the Red Rider BB gun and so on. Derek, Ricky and Stiles reclaimed their seat on the big couch with Derek and Ricky tucked into the corner and Stiles draped across their laps. There was enough room for Cora and Ravyn to take up residence on the couch as well. The rest of the gang took up positions around the room and the 'adults' settled at the table across the room and pulled out a deck of cards, probably to play something simple like canasta or something, poker didn't really work with Weres because they couldn't lie to each other. Ricky enjoyed the settled and happy feeling inside but it matched the contentment that floated around the room in the air. He leaned his head down onto Derek's shoulder as the opening scene began and he reached out to take one of Stiles' hands in between his before he smoothed a fingertip over the top of Stiles' hand. They sat like that for so long, Ricky could feel his side getting tingly from disuse. He knew the moment Laura and a few others went to start dinner. He looked over to Stiles who was curled into Derek's side and wondered if he had the know how to go in and help but then he really wanted to stay here with his mates then he realized something and tilted his head to the side, "Is this what its like? To have a pack?" he whispered but realized what a silly endeavor it was. Someone turned the sound down and the people in the kitchen stilled enough to listen.

"What do you mean?" Derek asked, Stiles tilting his head in curiosity.

"We have a pack per se but betas are so self sufficient that we all have to know everything to make a household run effectively but no one has asked us to do anything or do more than we are able. Is this what its like to like with a pack, to be close? Everyone taking care of each other."

Derek turned enough to pull Ricky in close to his side and spoke with a little smile, "Well I can't guarantee anything about any other Pack but this is what the Hale pack is like. Many of us choose later in life, even with mates and children to live with siblings like my mom and Uncle Peter, we would have a support system, its important for family and pack dynamics but also because we have an omega to protect, because of the stupid Caste misunderstandings and the hunters out to get them. Its different for us right now because of college but we have each other and Scott and our mini pack but this is my home, your home if you would have it?"

Ricky looked over the edge of the couch to see his mother and father watching him, a mixture of love and just a touch of embarrassment possibly. It was tough to scent out the specific emotions with so many bodies in the room. Shelby gave him an almost imperceptible nod. He leaned up into Derek's face and pressed his lips to the alphas for a gentle kiss, pulling back with surprise at the tingle of tears in his eyes. He didn't have anything to cry about but he could feel the sensation just beneath the surface.

"We are going to have such a strong pack Der," Ricky whispered in answer and with that the spell was broken and everyone went back to watching the movie. They watched to the end, laughing about the iconic lines and Stiles giggling in a ridiculous display of humor when the boy on the screen dressed in the bunny pajamas. Ricky sat back and enjoyed the show that Stiles was putting on whenever he couldn't help but whisper the lines under his breath or motioned around spastically as was his habit in life. After the credits rolled on one movie, Stiles jumped up and grabbed another movie and slipped it inside and when the screen lit up to show the beginning scene of How the Grinch Stole Christmas making everyone either groan happily or just laugh. Ricky tugged Stiles back down on top of him and Derek, resettling everyone then reached over and pulled Ravyn and Cora in close for a quick side hug because suddenly it felt so important that they be there, be present with not only his mates but his sister and parents as well as Stiles' family and Derek's family. This wasn't just about letting all three of the new mates be with their family for the holidays, it was about making a stronger pack for Talia and making strong pack ties for Derek, Ricky and Stiles which would continue to help them through tough times and good times for the rest of their lives.

Ricky smiled as he tucked his head against Derek's shoulder once more, content to stay like that until dinner was served. Later there was a dinner, a table laden with so much food it should have bowed beneath the pressure and there was laughter and happiness and genuine care for each between all the families. It turned out to be such a beautiful day for the beta and his mates; he couldn't imagine anything going wrong on such a day.

He really should have known better.


	9. One More Holiday

**Chapter Nine: One More Holiday**

The week between Christmas and New Years passed in relative ease, there were pockets of chatting and playing board games together. They ran again once, a few days before and the races and games had shifted outside in the back yard. The air was a little chilly but to werewolves it was nothing terrible. Stiles had never been a team sports kind of guy, he hadn't ever really been an outdoors kind of guy either but playing with his family, his pack siblings and his mates had quickly become one of his favorite activity. Partially it had to do with the friendships that were being built here but also when he played with Derek and Ricky, they usually ended up hot and bothered so they would quickly vacate the game and run up to their room, barely getting the door closed before ripping at each others clothes. It was heavenly.

Stiles knew as soon as they returned to the campus and started classes again; a lot of their time wasn't going to be more than a kiss and falling into bed at the end of long days. Except for Heat, which was going to happen right before midterms because of awful timing. Ricky was starting his accelerated program and Derek had work as well as class and Stiles had a movement to get back to. He'd been lax about it since he'd been here, allowing his happiness and life to take precedence as it should be but if he ever wanted to show the other omegas of the world that they had the right to come out of hiding then he would need to stop waiting to see if someone else would jump on board with him. He couldn't push Isaac but he could start talking to Carmen and maybe learning about the laws around omegas as well as the alpha rules in comparison. Honestly this revolution was a lot about flying by the seat of his pants and knowing a lot of information about as many different topics as possible.

So Stiles started using his new search engine credentials to start looking up omega papers in his spare time but today was one more day that was about family. They were planning a lunch and then there was a fireworks display somewhere in town that they would be able see and hear even at this distance. They were going to go to the edge of the Preserve and enjoy the show without the up close display being so loud it was hurtful. For now though Stiles was sitting in bed, curled in between Derek and Ricky with his fingers rubbing gently into their arms. He allowed his touch to wake them slowly and then as they were shifting carefully around him, Stiles decided to take some action. He leaned down under the loose covers and pressed his questing fingertips into each of their abs and pressed against the stretchy waistband of their sleeping pants and slid down to press his fingers and palm against their morning wood and they both moaned and awoke with a jerk.

"Stiles!" Derek and Ricky shouted together and the omega grinned as he leaned down enough to start stroking them both, digging into a fast and hard rhythm that had them sucking in deep breaths and fighting the need to come then he twisted his hands a little and tightened his fingers just a little and with a groan, both man came in their pants, leaving them breathing heavily and Stiles immensely satisfied. He snickered at the blissed out look on their faces and tugged his hands away from their groans, wiping the stickiness away from his hands. When his mates caught their breath, they immediately turned to give Stiles some relief as well and he mumbled and groaned through his own orgasm before they tumbled to the bathroom for a quick shower before they dressed and walked downstairs to join the rest of the family. Talia was in the kitchen, sitting at the island with a mug of coffee between her hands and a newspaper laid out in front of her. Stiles looked around and used his hearing to sense where the others of the pack were located, several were in bed still but Cora and Ravyn were in the living room and Shelby and Braeden were coming down the stairs. Peter and Carmen were in the backyard and Stiles turned in that direction and peaked through the window to watch them. There was no way to hide what he was doing but Peter didn't seem to be bothered by the audience.

"You would say such things about an omega? Someone like me?" Carmen was asking.

Peter sighed, "I didn't know you. I have accepted that I would never find someone to love and bond with. I had given up, you cannot fault me for that since it happened before I knew you."

Carmen stood from her position on the steps and paced in front of Peter, "You believe all the things about omegas that I hate knowing about myself. You treated Stiles badly, the beloved omega of your nephew and you think that should just be forgotten?"

Peter groaned, "No, that is not my intention but fear and loss had made me hard and there is no defense against that sometimes. Please allow me to prove to you that I don't believe the harsh things I've said in the past. Allow me to show you what loving me could be like and how much my love and bond could be for you as well. Please give me that chance?"

Carmen paused and Stiles could see the forgiveness in her face and opened the door and presented himself to them with a grin. "Hey Carmen, I was hoping I could get your number and ask you about growing up omega and what your trials have been like. I am trying to learn about omegas and reteach betas and alphas about pack dynamics. You interested?"

Carmen smiled at Stiles sweetly, "I do not know what I can tell you but I would be pleased to help you Stiles. It sounds like I can pay back some of my mate's horrible behavior."

Peter grunted in annoyance, like he might argue but said nothing. Stiles gave a flailing wave to both of them, a haughty wink towards Peter before he turned back inside and grabbed some food. There was a big breakfast but they would undoubtedly be snacking through out the day like any other day on this vacation, someone was always in the kitchen cooking something.

Stiles relaxed at the table and munched on the fare of eggs and toast, as well as juice and sausage. Derek and Ricky were both eating, caressing each other for closeness and the girls and Otto joined at the scent of food from the kitchen.

"Morning and Happy New Year!" Ravyn shouted as she walked into the room, making Stiles flinch at her high-pitched tone. He grumbled under his breath about sisters who were way to exuberant and Cora who was skipping into the room quickly followed her. They allowed the afternoon to wile away, Stiles fooling around on his computer and Ricky reading and thankfully after and ridiculously long wait they were getting ready to leave, jumping in multiple cars to drive out to the edge of the Preserve. Stiles drove Derek and Ricky there, and Stiles jumped out of the car as soon as he put it in park and he scrambled up on the hood and he was bookended by Derek and Ricky almost immediately. They sat back and enjoyed the light show, each of the bursts of light in the eyes of a Were are bright and significantly perfect in their utter chaos. They can hear the pops and bangs from the explosions and it wasn't uncomfortably loud, it was enjoyable from here and they stayed there for the half hour show before they headed back to the house.


	10. Danger of a New Year

**Chapter Ten: Danger of a New Year**

Derek watched as Stiles bounced around the jeep, as the fireworks show ended and the omega danced spastically to the tunes floating out of the open window of the vehicle. Ricky was grinning as he leaned his elbows on the hood and Derek was just leaning back on the side of the vehicle as well, hands pressed deep into his leather jacket. Many of his pack members were already clambering back into their vehicles, pleased with the end to 2014 and the beginning of 2015. The only members who weren't with them right now was Melissa who was working, Scott and Alison who were going on a date and Laura who was working late. She was supposed to join them but they hadn't seen her yet this evening.

"Let's go home Stiles," Derek finally said which only brought the omega's attention back to him and Stiles was pressing himself against Derek's chest provocatively. The alpha growled deep in his throat and gripped Stiles around the hips to stop the friction that was making a certain part of his anatomy stand to attention.

Ricky just chuckled as he climbed into the passenger seat and Derek shifted Stiles to shove him into the driver seat before he climbed into the back seat while Stiles grumbled, "Spoil sport," under his breath.

"We can go home and have all the sex you would like but lets get home."

Stiles is more than happy after that to zip home, making it there in half the time. Talia, Peter and Carmen were already inside and Shelby and Braeden were waiting for them to get out of the vehicle. Otto, Ravyn and Cora were dancing around on the porch like maniacs and Stiles rushed out of the car and towards the door, not paying attention to anything around him. Derek chuckled as he followed, taking Ricky's hand gently in his. Cora and Ravyn each hugged their older brother then they were all pressing into the house when Derek took in a deep breath and gasped. He couldn't believe his mother hadn't noticed but he could scent the slightest bitterness of wolfsbane, "Mom!" he shouted then the door slammed and he pressed against it, finding it difficult to reopen. He frowned and turned to demand help with Peter was suddenly there to push as well. He could smell the wolfsbane, burning into his nostrils as he continued to push, knowing there had to be something pretty heavy and/or strong to hold back two alphas on the other side.

"What's happening?" Stiles asked, the quaver in his voice making Derek want to rip through the flesh of whoever was doing this but first he needed to get Stiles and Ricky out. Finally the strength holding the door closed released and he and Peter were about to fall forward when something stopped him. He gasped at the pain before he shoved away from the barrier and looked down to curse.

"Mom, there's Mountain Ash!" Derek shouted and he could hear his mother race to the other door and throw it open only to repeat Derek's curse and he knew without a shadow of doubt that they were trapped here. The younger wolves were whimpering deep in their throats and Stiles and Ricky shushed them as gently as possible especially since Derek's mates were shivering from the fear as well.

"Hunters?" Stiles demanded angrily which made Derek proud for a moment because if Stiles was mad then he was focused and right now the pack needed the omega's amazing brain on full tilt. "We're trapped, but there must be a way to get out."

Derek shook his head at Stiles' second comment; Mountain Ash was impenetrable for wolvers. He looked around the house, guessing that the ash was a complete circle around the ground of the house otherwise they would've been able to get through the door. He didn't understand why no one smelled anything until he had inside the house. Why was the scent of wolfsbane inside the house? "Peter? Mom? What do we do?"

The other two alphas were searching the downstairs for something, anything to do what they could to escape. Derek took a moment to direct everyone away from the windows and doors at the edge of the foyer and then turned back to the open door. He was heading back over to the open door to see if he could see another way out of this when he heard a strange snick and whizz the only warning when an arrow came through the front door and stuck in the wall with a loud thunk. Derek cursed when he saw the fire, moving over to try to tug the arrow from the wall but found his skin burning and he gasped in pain.

"Freaking hunters and their wolfsbane!" he growled.

There was another zing and another arrow thunked into the high wall on the opposite side of the room, also set ablaze. Derek watched as Peter started trying to put out the flickering arrow only to pull away quickly as well. "We have to get out!" Talia shuddered, "Not another fire, we can't do this again."

He could hear the anxiety and scent the fear that was strangling her. Derek paced the room quickly and smacked his mother across the face, to the shock of everyone in the room. "Snap out of this Mom, we need you!"

Talia snarled at him but he could see the focus in her deep blue gaze once more. Her claws were out but she didn't attack Derek, she just brought her head up again and immediately went back to searching out some answers. Derek did the same, moving back towards the door only to jerk out of the way of another flaming arrow. "Son of a bitch!" he shouted, glad though that the hunters apparently wanted them to die slow otherwise this would have been all over already.

Derek looked around, tucking Stiles away from the open door so any more stray arrows couldn't strike him as the omega had moved towards the door and Derek again. Wolves couldn't break a line of Mountain Ash, only someone with a Spark, the belief that they could make a difference. In a world of Weres, a Spark was the only thing more powerful than an alpha or the ability of an omega and Derek didn't know if there was anyone they could call in time to save them all. There were pack members out there but they would be walking into a hunter attack and wouldn't be able to touch the line of ash either.

The fire from the multiple arrows was seeping into the walls, making rings of charred wood and Derek took a couple of deep breaths to keep from hyperventilating as he remembered the flames licking through this same house that took his father. Derek refused to get trapped in the past, he had to stay strong to keep Stiles and Ricky safe no matter what.

"How are we getting out?" Ricky whispered, taking his little sister's hand in his and huddled closer to his parents. Derek wanted to touch him, comfort his mate but he couldn't, not while the alphas in the room were attempting to figure out a plan. He was so focused on what he was going to do that he didn't hear Stiles moving until the obstinant omega was once more in front of the door. He cursed and moved to grab Stiles when a shower of water came pouring into the house from above the door, straight on to Stiles who screamed and everything started burning. Derek shouted at him then jerked forward to remove Stiles from the stream of water and got burned for his trouble.

"Wolfsbane water," Stiles gasped and tried to shake off the pain that seared through Derek's senses and he hadn't received the shower Stiles had. His thin buzz cut of hair was gone, his neck and shoulders were red and sizzling as the skin attempted to grow back only to slough off in the process since the wolfsbane was still present on his skin. Derek pulled Stiles against him gently and another arrow snicked by his shoulders and planted into someone's arm, he knew from the squelch of sound instead of the dull thid of the wall. He turned to find Ricky grasping at the arrow now imbedded in his father's chest.

"Ricky?" Derek demanded.

"I got it, stay with Stiles!" Ricky demanded in a very alpha-like tone.

"I gotta do something Derek, I can help," Stiles whispered, his voice raw from the pain and blood pooling a little at the corner of his mouth. Derek just held on tighter, couldn't let him go.

"Derek, the fire is spreading, lets get some water on them!" Talia demanded and he immediately felt his alpha's pull and pressed a gentle kiss to the clean side of Stiles' neck before he moved to help his mother. He tried to keep an ear focused on Stiles and Ricky but he didn't know the little brat had moved again until someone gasped, possibly Stiles himself.

Derek turned when he heard the shocked whimper from his omega and turned to see Stiles trying to reach for the Mountain Ash. He was struggling against the spell of the ash but he was getting closer, he was sifting through the line while everyone watched in amazement as Stiles started to glow just a little. To a human it wouldn't have looked very different but to the wolf senses of everyone in the house, he was a supernova of unexpected ability so when the line was broken everyone was silent until a shot rang out and Stiles stumbled back a step Derek cried out in shock. He and Ricky both jumped forward and cradled him between them as black puss started oozing from the wound in his chest.

"No Stiles, don't you dare! Why do you have to save everyone all the freaking time?" Derek shouted as he cradled Stiles in his arms. "He broke the line, get out of here!"

Each Were started moving towards the two doors of the house only to find them both still booby trapped with falling wolfsbane flavored water but the faster they got out, the lest they were burned. The adults were handling it better but poor Cora and Ravyn were crying as they curled into their mother's shoulders as everyone quickly got to the safety of the cars, for now just using them for protection instead of getting in just yet all the while listening for the whistle of wolfsbane bullets or arrows but Talia and Pater both ran out towards the outskirts of the property where the shooters were located.

Derek knew they would need the wolfsbane if they were going to save Stiles from the bullet burrowed in his side and they also needed to be able to wash the wolfsbane laced water off their skin. He could feel the sizzle of skin along his shoulder and back, his body shuddering in pain while he carried Stiles who was shuddering in pain, his breathing sounding juicy and Derek knew they were going to have to get to the hospital.

Beacon Hills had a whole unit to help with werewolf related injuries, not only the Bite but also when wolves were targeted as well. Derek wanted to run but until they had some sort of assurance that the shooter was neutralized otherwise someone else would get shot. Derek hissed as the burn of skin melting away under his clothes numbed out and whited his vision for a moment before he refocused his attention on Stiles, on the blood that was trickling from his mouth.

"Stiles, baby, you have to stay with me," Derek whispered gently then looked around and saw Ricky curl around his little sister, both of them with wolfsbane burns along the shoulders and neck, he felt a cooling drop of water and looked towards the sky for a moment and sighed happily when a summer shower started to fall. Derek wished he could remove his clothes and allow the water to soak into his skin and clean him off but he couldn't remove his hands from Stiles' chest where it was trying to stem the flow of blackened blood.

"Get the wet clothes off," Derek commanded in a tight voice. He could see the others all around, huddled behind the trees and furniture on the deck, but out of the wolfsbane laced water.

"Hunters neutralized?" he called out, hoping Peter and his mother could hear him. They needed to get Stiles to the hospital; the alpha could hear the rattle in Stiles' lungs as he was forced to work harder to get less air into his body. The blood was pooling around Stiles, staining Derek's clothes and the ground underneath him. Now that he was focusing on something beyond the pain he could hear the struggle in the woods and then nothing. Talia shouted, "Go Derek, get them to the hospital fast!"

Derek immediately got up from the ground and everyone was stumbling into vehicles in very un-wolf like clumsiness. Many of them weren't hurting as badly and those were the people driving. Derek was in the jeep's back seat and Ricky climbed into the driver seat without his shirt but Derek could still see the skin trying to heal and immediately burning with the remaining patches of wolfsbane on his skin. Shelby and Braeden were leaning into each other in the passenger seat and they raced together towards the hospital, making the trip in half the time it would normally take. Derek was losing time or that's what it felt like when they slammed to a stop and everyone crashed through the emergency room doors and Derek shouted, "Wolfsbane bullets, burns and just help us!"

That seemed to create a magical flurry of movement. There was Melissa and Derek was much better prepared to hand Stiles over to the adopted mother of his omega than any other. Immediately some dragged him away as Melissa spoke to him.

"I will keep him safe for you Derek, you and Ricky get patched up. GO!" she shouted the last word and Derek was led into another room. He was shoved none to gently into a shower and a blast of cold water immediately started pouring down over him and then someone was using some horribly abrasive scrub brush to attack his skin. He screamed for what seemed like eternity before the wolfsbane was finally washed off for the most part and he collapsed, unable to stay aware any longer.

He just hoped Stiles and Ricky would be there when he awoke.


	11. Hospital Stay

**Chapter Eleven: Hospital Stay**

Scott looked down at his phone and could see his mother was calling, he looked over to Alison and called out, "Mom is calling, give me a sec?"

Alison gave her happy smile and waved from where she was leaning against a nearby bridge. Scott pressed the call button and spoke into the phone, "Hey mom."

"Hey Scottie, you and Alison should probably get to the hospital. There was an attack and many of the pack members were hurt. Stiles was hurt badly."

"Oh god, what happened? Is he okay? Tell me he's going to be okay?" Scott gasped and Alison caught his words and her attention was on him instantly. He would never try to hide anything from his mate but the Beta was strong enough to hear him from across the distance that was between them.

"He has wolfsbane burns, he was shot with a wolfsbane bullet but they are taking care of him now. Derek, Ricky and most of the family have slight wolfsbane burns from the booby traps. It's going to be a painful couple of hours for a few of them but I don't think any of them are in horrible danger. Stiles is going to have a slow recovery."

"On my way," Scott said before he'd even understood he was moving. Alison and he were both moving towards the hospital from the Preserve where they'd been for their romantic stroll. Alison didn't talk to him, didn't ask anything that she may have wanted to know and they were coming close to the hospital when someone called out, "Alison!"

His mate stopped and turned, forcing Scott to stop as well since Alison was holding his hand. She frowned at whoever was calling out and Scott took in a deep breath through his nose and found that scent of perfume and wolfsbane, "Ali, she's a hunter. Stay away from her!"

"Aunt Kate?" Alison finally spoke but she didn't open the door.

Scott jerked his gaze from 'Aunt Kate' in the shadows of a tree but he got the sense of a slender woman with waves of dark hair then back to Alison and back again, "What the hell!"

"Alison, how could you do this? You're a wolf? And with the Hale pack to boot?"

"Aunt Kate, I've been a werewolf for several years now, I was going to die if I didn't accept the Bite. An alpha not local did it for me and Dad was right there with me. What are you doing here?"

"I am here to be sure the wolves cease to exist, I didn't take into account you would have a Spark among you."

"Spark?" Scott asked. He knew the stories about mythical and magical Sparks but he'd never heard of one in the Hale pack. He didn't know what she was talking about but they had places to be and she was a hunter even if she was apparently related to Scott's girlfriend.

"Don't go to that hospital Alison, don't throw your lot in with the Hales and the omega."

Alison frowned, "This is about Stiles, don't you dare hurt him. He's my friend!"

"That won't save him Ali, stay away from him otherwise you are going to get caught in the crossfire," with that she was walking away and Scott couldn't give enough damn to chase after her.

He grabbed Alison again and they booked it around the corner and into the hospital. Luckily his mother must have been waiting because she was right there, gripping Scott's hands in between hers suddenly, allowing the touch to calm him immediately. He got the instant pack sensation and was able to take a deep breath before he spoke.

"Mom, where is he?"

"He's with the doctors, they've been able to undo the damage of the bullet and thankfully because of his slower healing abilities, they've been able scrub his skin and keep the healing and burning to a minimum, that's the crap with wolf healing sometimes. Stiles doesn't have any hair right now so he's going to look a little different and they are going to induce a pretty heavily sedated sleep for a day or so. He's not going to be up for visitors but I can take you to Talia and the others who are already in recovery.

Scott nodded and shared a sideways glance with Alison, "What about Stiles' dad?"

"He's in recovery too, just a little burning across the neck and shoulder. Do you want to go see him first?"

"No, Sherriff and Mrs. Hale, we have information for them both."

Alison whimpered a little, her eyes widening but Scott ignored her reaction. He wasn't going to protect a woman he barely knew when his best friend was at stake. Melissa nodded and brought them to a small room and a few moments of silence between the couple then Talia was walking into the room, red marks still healing on her neck and a simple shirt wrapped around her to leave the tops of her shoulder blades open to healing. Scott had never seen wolfsbane burns like that, he could see that the skin was mending into tight flesh but it was taking a long time for an alpha. Stiles' dad was the same way.

John immediately pulled Scott close for a loose hug, "So glad you weren't there Scottie, just wish Stiles hadn't been either."

Scott smiled and tucked his head into the older alpha's neck so he could scent the area with something other hospital smell and healing flesh. "Glad you're okay Sheriff."

John chuckled at Scott's words then the two alphas settled on the side of the bed in the room, close together but not close enough to touch. It was a clear sign that they were both tired and in need of pack to sit so close to another alpha, especially injured but then John and Talia had grown close since their sons became mates.

"Who is your aunt?" Scott demanded of Alison and she glared at him so he just spoke. "We ran into the hunter who attacked the house and Stiles at the mall too, her name to Alison is 'Aunt Kate'. What the hell Alison?" he demanded.

Alison winced under his shout as well as the intense stare of both of the other alphas, "I didn't know anything about this. Kate, my father's sister, was an estranged part of my family and she is close with my grandfather: Gerard. When I got sick and I was turned, my father became estranged from Gerard and I haven't heard from them for a long time. I don't want you to kill my aunt but I don't think you have a choice do you?"

Talia took a couple steps towards Alison and tugged her in close for a hug, "Oh sweetie, we're not going to do anything unless she comes for us again. We are already going to have fire damage and special cleansing for the house but no one died."

"She said she's coming back for Stiles, maybe its time to get him out of Beacon Hills and back to the college or something. In the college, Kate wouldn't be able to get to him so easily or something. I don't know but I feel like he's a sitting duck here."

Talia released Alison for a moment and touched the side of Scott's face, "Listen, I am going to do everything in my power to make sure my son's mate is protected. I can't watch him go through the same loss I did, especially so soon after they found each other. I promise you that Scott, and we'll keep you safe Alison if your aunt comes at us again."

Alison and Scott just nodded and then Melissa came to show Scott to where Stiles was. Scott looked into the other room from the window to find Stiles lying on his side with red patches of skin everywhere. Nurses were sitting next to the bed, flaking away skin that was still burning off as they tried to get the wolfsbane off his skin before it healed again.

"Why is he so much worse?" Scott asked, his voice rough from fear and tears.

"Because he stayed under the booby trapped door to get them out of the Mountain Ash trap as far as I can tell. I don't know how he got them out but from what the others said, he was being sprayed with wolfsbane infused water the whole time he was in the doorway. Everyone else got seconds of water poured on them whereas Stiles was showered for a lot longer."

Scott sighed, gripping his mother's hand for a moment and he watched as Derek and Ricky were brought into the room. They were sleeping at the moment, tucked onto the same bed and it was locked into place close enough to Stiles that they could see him but far enough that the nurses could still stand and do their job and the alpha knew his best friend was in for a god awful recovery from this so he sat down in one of the chairs near the window and Alison paced the hall, staying out of the way of the hospital employees. Others of the pack came and went but as they were healing better, almost all of the pack returned to some of the houses around Beacon Hills until the Hale house could be checked over. Braeden, Shelby and Ravyn returned to Melissa's house after they spoke to Ricky who woke for a few minutes before the hospital gave him another sedative. When Scott asked about the sedatives for Ricky and Derek to which Talia interrupted, as she was there, "Stiles is hurting, he is badly injured and there is nothing they can do to fix it. That could send Ricky of Derek into a rage or something, they could fly off the handle and search for the hunters with a blood thirsty vengeance and we do not want that, the sleep is for their own good."

Scott nodded and just kept on sitting with him while most of the Hales, except for Peter and Talia went to the Stilinski house. They were going to be shoved into small spaces but after being injured that's probably not going to be a problem. Scott tried to get Alison to go home but she wouldn't go for it and John refused to leave his son. Cora and Otto didn't want to leave Derek and Talia but their mother insisted they be safe. Carmen was with them as well and several of Stilinski's deputies were on each house, a wolf and human both just in case of another trap and John had constant updates while he was at the hospital.

Almost a week passed like this, with bad hospital food and quick trips to the Stilinski house to shower. Scott knew that Talia had a Were contractor and Deaton come in and determine if the house was salvageable and luckily with some cleansing and elbow grease the house would be just fine and it would be there for the pack and Derek when they are home and so on. Scott was pleased to know the house wouldn't have to be torn down to his foundation because of the tainted showers of water.

It was on the sixth day when the skin of Stiles' body started to truly heal and all three mates were allowed to come out of the drugged stupor they were in and Scott was there when it happened.


	12. Lockdown

**Chapter Twelve: Lockdown**

**Author's note: thank you to the guest you let me know the last chapter had been published in code instead of words. I don't know how that happened but its better now. Anyway, happy reading and please review, i love hearing from all of you!**

Stiles woke slowly, with shallow pained pants coming from his mouth and sounding loud in his ears. He could hear three other heartbeats and breathing patterns in the room. He didn't want to open his eyes, trying to focus on each ache and pain and cataloguing the feelings. His back, neck, face and shoulders were achingly tight and even the air across the skin was uncomfortable. His chest was also itchy around the bullet hole but that was about it. He finally took a deeper breath and his eyes fluttered open. He looked around the horribly white room he was in, then found Melissa looking down at him with a gentle smile on her face, he kept searching the room finding Scott and Alison standing with Talia and his father on the other side of a bay of windows but he kept moving and found Ricky and Derek on another bed shifting and waking slowly as well.

Then he flashed back to the reason he was in the hospital to begin with, there was an attack on the Hale house, and they were trapped by Mountain Ash. At that, Stiles' eyes went back to his dad who looked like he was okay as well as Talia. He turned back to Melissa, "Everyone okay?"

"Of course Stiles," she said with a smile. "You were the one hurt the worst, most of the pack is either at my place or your father's house while the Hale house is getting worked on."

Stiles nodded then turned back to his mates again, "Ricky? Derek?"

"Stiles, you okay?" Derek whispered.

"What happened?" Ricky husked at the same time.

"We kept all three of you asleep for a little while so Stiles could heal without interference and a hellish amount of pain. You guys can get up, get dressed and we'll get your discharge papers for you." With that, Melissa leaned down and in a very unprofessional manner pressed a kiss to Stiles' forehead and walked out. Stiles pushed himself up and watched as Derek and Ricky stumbled off their bed, dressed in scrubs and bare feet, Stiles loved their bare feet and that was weird but oh well.

He smiled when they surrounded his bed and took each of his hands and then he was leaning against Derek's side and his other hand was pulling Ricky up next to him on the bed. "Hey guys," he whispered and scented Derek's neck gently, trying to get past the hospital smell but they'd been here for too long. Stiles suddenly wanted out so they could rub their scent all over each other and get rid of the awful antiseptic and cleanliness and he hated it.

"Can we go home please?" Stiles whispered.

Derek chuckled and pressed a kiss into the side of Stiles' head and Ricky did the same thing. Then they were helping him stand, slipping an open-backed shirt onto his shoulders while leaving it down to keep the shoulders open to the air. Derek held him up while Ricky helped him into some hospital pants and shoes that were clearly from his luggage. Both his mates were slipping on shoes and coats as well.

They got out of the room and Stiles got short and loose hugs with Talia, his dad and Scott before Melissa was back to shove him gently into a wheelchair before they wheeled them out to the front. Stiles gratefully signed himself out and everyone and they piled into cars and Stiles curled up in the back of his own jeep with Scott and Alison in the front while Ricky and Derek bookended him with their arms wrapped around him and their noses in his throat but not pressing painfully into his skin. It was a short trip to the Stilinski house and Stiles was pleased when he and his mates wandered slowly up stairs and he found his bedroom with all their stuff in the closet and the bed already made. He was surprised to find a larger bed that dwarfed the bedroom now but it would be good for sleeping with Derek and Ricky. Stiles decided it was time for a nap so he flopped down on the bed, on top of the blankets and allowed Derek and Ricky to care for him. He didn't understand why he was so tired but he was pretty sure he didn't care as long as he could curl into his mates' arms and not move for at least a little while.

"Sleep with me please, I know its been to long," Stiles whispered and both of the Weres followed him into the bed and the omega allowed himself to be pulled under. It felt good to be here and sleeping naturally with his mates.

The next time Stiles woke it was to Derek and Ricky talking to each other, ignoring the omega on the bed. He didn't know how much time had passed but he knew his mates were angry about something; it was in their scent and in their tones as they spoke. Not to mention they hadn't noticed the change in his breathing or heartbeat when he woke.

"Do you really imagine that will work?" Derek was saying.

"We can't let him out of the house by himself, Kate is still out there and she's gunning for him. He should be protected and its our job to do so," Ricky was saying and Stiles frowned.

"Have you met Stiles, do you honestly believe that he's going to be okay with that? Gari please don't do this."

Ricky growled and Stiles did everything he could not to transmit to them he was awake. "Derek, he's going to get killed! I can't survive without him!"

He could hear Derek pulling Ricky close and his voice was muffled and Stiles figured he was talking into Ricky's throat, "We're not going to lose him Garrick, we'll do what we must to protect him."

Stiles rolled his eyes but he thought about it, he was the omega and he was in danger right now in this place. The safest thing he could do was listen to his mates and stop fooling himself into believing he could be the Joan of Arc in the omega revolution. So he stayed in bed, curled in on himself and sighed sadly. He knew when his mates heard the noise and redirected course to climb back into bed. Stiles was pleased that the pain had sunk even farther away, so when Derek pressed a kiss to the back of his neck, it didn't twinge. Ricky just wrapped himself around Stiles.

"How are you feeling?" Ricky whispered.

Stiles shrugged, "I'm doing better. I am a little hungry though, did you maybe think you could get me some food?" his voice was so much smaller than he'd ever heard himself say and he didn't really like it though he figured if he was going to do everything to become the omega that could stay alive and say what he needed to say. For now, that meant allowing his mates to care for him and not leaving the premises without Derek or Ricky. He was going to do whatever it took to make sure his mates were happy and they weren't put in this position again.

Derek and Ricky were obnoxiously happy to leave the room to get some food for Stiles and he just waited for them to return and didn't even get up to find out the time, or the day or anything of any consequence. He didn't even really know what kind of life he could truly have in a town that he'd splashed his Caste all over the Internet and town. He was happy to accept the sandwiches Derek and Ricky brought back as well as the cup of milk and chips. They had some food for themselves and ate the meal in bed. There was nothing else he could say, so they sat in silence and ate. The beauty of the bond was that he found comfort in the silence between them but he knew his mates were waiting for him to say something, anything. Nothing came, Stiles stayed silent and thought about the world he lived in, the fear he should and was starting to feel about everything. Kate was able to get into their home, be on their land all without them smelling her until it was too late. He didn't know how Carmen was handling this, he didn't know what it was like for Isaac either but he knew the pain in Ricky and Derek, the rage they shared when Stiles got hurt and there was nothing but him to stop it from happening again.

"Stiles? Why so quiet? Its kind of freaking me out," Ricky spoke and the laugh he emitted was unsure and forced.

Stiles just shrugged quietly and continued eating. Ricky dropped it for now and Derek was watching both of them curiously. Stiles didn't want to talk about anything, he just wanted to do what he must so they could make it back to campus and reclaim some sort of normalcy, as much as they could have when they were in a werewolf society.

"When we heading home? When does school start back up?" he asked quietly.

Derek frowned at his tone but said nothing as Ricky answered, the Beta's voice was calm but unsure to Stiles' sensitive ears, "Classes are beginning again in a week."

"Maybe we should go back now, make sure we're settled and have everything for class?" Stiles asked, didn't demand and didn't tell. There was nothing in his tone except submission and Derek shook his shoulders and rolled his head as if he could get the strange sensation away from him. Stiles knew the alpha had given up everything at a very young age for Stiles to be the kind of werewolf he wanted to do instead of what his Caste made him to be but Stiles was done costing his mates too much pain.

"I think you should rest a few more days before we head back, this house is bursting at the seams with Hale pack so you won't be alone and it will be safe. You should be at full strength before we head home."

Stiles nodded at his alpha's words and he finished his meal before claiming exhaustion before he laid back down and closed his eyes, listening to them as they picked up after the shared meal and headed back out of the room. Stiles' heart hurt a little that they were leaving him here alone but before he could give some kind of whimpering, simpering omega noise they were back and curling around his skinny body and Stiles sighed and let the sleep take him once more. He may not have been so exhausted he needed instant sleep but it was a close second and as long as Derek and Ricky were there to keep him safe and warm then sleep was no hard feat to accomplish.


	13. Isolation

**Chapter Thirteen: Isolation**

**Author's note: So sorry for the length of absence, I have a new full time job which is of course taking up a lot of my extra time but I am not going to let go of these stories and series. I promise you!**

It took a couple days for anyone to realize something was wrong, Ricky had spent so much time sleeping then watching over Stiles while he finished healing. Derek watched their omega closely but the beta was just pleased that they weren't constantly dealing with Stiles running off and getting hurt because he's incapable of thinking things through. Now Stiles was resting, eating and stayed in bed with pack mates whenever he wasn't in bed with Ricky or Derek. They decided that they were stay the week before classes went back into session, heading back the weekend before which would give them the time to clean up, go book and supply shopping before Monday started with classes. Stiles hadn't fought when Derek made that decision but Ricky continued to just be happy that Stiles would be safe.

Until Cora invited them all to the park on the last day, staying in the Preserve but wanted everyone to go for one more run together before they headed back to the college but Stiles just smiled and brought his pack sister into bed and they curled up close to one another. Then Ricky walked out of the bedroom, pulling the door closed on the two cuddle bugs and wandered down stairs in the Stilinski house and found himself in the kitchen where Derek, John and Talia were sitting at the table with coffee and tea sitting out between them.

"Something is wrong with Stiles," he blurted and Derek shushed him gently as he tugged a chair out for the beta to settle next to him.

"Did you close the door?" Derek questioned gently.

Ricky nodded and took Derek's hand, "I didn't notice. I didn't worry but he won't go for a run, he hates staying still. He hates being in the same place for too long."

Derek nodded and Ricky shifted his gaze to Talia and John, sighed unhappily.

"He's scared huh?" Ricky whispered miserably. He'd been so happy to see Stiles okay and safe, that he'd forgotten about Stiles. And suddenly Ricky hated himself for that, he didn't fall in love with a whimpering weak omega, he fell in love with Stiles but that wolf had disappeared since they left the hospital.

"He's scared but I also sense from him that he doesn't want to be a bother to us," Derek said in return, even as his fingers gently stroked between the knuckles of Ricky's hand. The motion was soothing; it warmed a place inside him where Derek's love and affection always touched. It was a slightly different place than Stiles held inside; it came from a place if protection and devotion instead of the comfort that Derek always gave him. That's what made it even worse, his wolf and his human half only really agreed on one thing for sure, and that was doing everything in his power to care for the omega. Right now, that place was filled with guilt and shame.

"He's not going to bother us, what's happening to our beautiful mate?" Ricky whispered.

Derek reached out with his other hand and pulled Ricky in to press their foreheads together before he shoved his nose into the alpha's neck and rubbed his scent there even as the tears leaked from the corner of his eyes. Derek could scent them on the air; there was no hiding them in the room so Ricky didn't try. He just accepted the hand to the back of his neck, the gentle message of his skin there and he let the negativity slink away. He pulled away and gave a tremulous smile, and looked to the three alphas. It was strange to think the possibility of sitting in the same room with three alphas because even the thought of one alpha used to freak him out. Before Derek, he hadn't even wanted to be in a room with one, and now he was equal in their eyes.

He didn't feel like a lowly beta here, he felt like an alpha without all the instincts that went with it of course.

"How do we help him?" Ricky asked resolutely.

John and Talia looked back and forth then shared a look with Derek and Ricky. There was something there, unspoken and under the surface because both older alphas had been so used to leading their respective packs that taking care of something like this could almost be done without speaking or possibly because they were parents, Ricky didn't know really.

"You and Derek should take him for a run, coax him out somehow and go from there. Maybe all he needs is a reminder that he loves being carefree and silly Stiles," Talia responded finally.

"Remember to be carefree and silly with him, protect him for sure but don't make it obvious because he'll know and if he knows then he's a burden which you are trying to prove he's not. Maybe he needs to run on two legs but more likely, he really needs to on all four. To an omega, running with one's mates is a blessing and for Stiles its doubly so because he stayed hidden for so long."

Ricky nodded and he stood up, Derek followed quickly but leaned over to kiss Talia on the cheek gently before leaving the room. Ricky waved to the other two alphas before he followed his alpha upstairs and got there in time to open the door and they walked into the bedroom where Stiles was alone again, Cora must have left only moments ago. The omega smiled but kept staring at the ceiling, listless, as he'd been for days. Ricky flinched at the realization and refocused on what they were going to do to fix it. Derek walked over to the bed and surprised everyone when he gripped Stiles by the shoulders and lifted the omega off the surface and planted him on his feet.

"Derek, I was resting," Stiles whined as he tried to remove Derek's fingers from his thinner arms.

"You've been resting long enough Stiles and its time to get up."

Stiles shook his head, his nails lengthened and swiped at Derek's arms but the alpha just gave Stiles lithe form a little shake and his claw tipped fingers slipped away once again. Ricky was surprised that Stiles was allowing Derek to manhandle him. Derek wasn't hurting him and Ricky had too much instinct to get into the middle of it.

Then Stiles spoke, "I don't want to get up Derek, I want to stay in bed where I'm safe and where you know I'm going to be okay. I don't know if I can go back to school."

Ricky reared back at that, shocked him into speaking, "What? Stiles when did you decide this?"

Derek looked over at Ricky and the beta shrugged before he quieted again.

"Stiles, you are going back to school and you are going to stop hiding in here. Nowhere is ever going to be perfectly safe and that will not stop you from living your life. Ricky and I are going to be with you, but you are going to do this on your own like you always have."

Stiles jerked away from Derek again this time the alpha released him, anger wafting from his scent all of a sudden, "Why should I? Derek! Huh? Should I do what you say because you're my alpha and you have the right to tell me what to do? Screw you! No get out!"

Derek just smiled, which made the omega growl deep in his throat and shoved the alpha. Ricky could understand the little obnoxious smile that was pissing Stiles off so much, the omega was more full of life right this second than he had for all the days since he'd left the hospital. Since Stiles couldn't get Derek out of the room, Stiles shoved him back a step and walked towards the door and exited the room, his two mates close behind him.

"This is what you want right? The omega's leaving his bedroom and leaving the house! Are you happy?" Stiles shouted, bringing people from the other rooms in the Stilinksi house, trying to find out what the omega was shouting about. Stiles walked out the back door and stripped off his clothes and quickly changed into his red-gold coated form and jerked into a run before Derek and Ricky even had time to start undressing. Ricky tripped over his feet in the process of stripping and shifting then Derek and Ricky were both running after the beautiful scent of their irate mate, Ricky could scent when the smell leaking from Stiles changed from the anger to the contentment then Ricky's wolf yipped in happiness. They caught up with Stiles quickly, since his legs in either form were much smaller than Ricky's or Derek's stride. Then they were running together and Ricky enjoyed watching Stiles prance around the woods before they headed back to the house but Ricky knew there was still more to be done when Stiles whimpered and had a hard time returning to his human form and going back inside the house. Derek and Ricky returned to two feet and quickly dressed and led Stiles inside who quickly ran back up the stairs and into their room. Derek sighed and gave a shrug to John and Talia who were staring after the little wolf in the house. Derek motioned to John and the father of their beloved omega walked up the stairs and into the bedroom. Ricky and Derek settled in the kitchen again with Derek's mother and sister.

Ricky hoped that John could reach his son in a way that maybe his mates couldn't.

John closed the door behind him, finding his son's beautiful wolf self tucked into his bed, head under a pillow and his tail pressed into his stomach. John sat down on the edge of the bed and pressed a gentle hand into the warm body and smiled, "I know it's hard to actually see what danger there is for omegas, it's hard to accept that this is what you could be dealing with."

Stiles whimpered and there was a little growl at the end, like that wasn't the reason here. "You're worried about Derek and Ricky then?" John continued.

Stiles shuddered, resettling his fur as if in answer. It had been too long since John had to guess at his son's non-verbal cues so he just continued talking, "You know that they love you as the brash, stupid never-gonna-stop-this fight Stiles, right?"

Stiles snorted a little.

"I mean it Stiles, they didn't fall in love with some omega that follows his alpha around with his tail between his legs, they fell in love with you dammit!"

Stiles flinched at his father's angry words and John settled him with a gentle hand slipping through the wolf's fur and John enjoyed the feel of his son's warm and soft coat since he hadn't been able to touch his son as a wolf for a lot of years, from the time Stiles had gone through his puberty and would have gone into Heat without the suppressants.

"I know this is hard for you to understand, but they need you." John whispered and watched as his son's bright wolf gaze locked on him and waited as John continued to talk. "Derek and Ricky need you to be who you truly are, they want you to be the brass balls kind of Stiles that takes on VP's of the college and won't back down when he should. I hope you don't lose that person just because of what happened. I can promise you, it terrifies me to no end that people know what you are but this fight is important and I hope you can find the way back to it in a way that honors who you are but also allows Derek and Ricky to stand beside you in the journey."

Stiles sniffed in agreement and suddenly he was shifting and dropping his wolf's coat as John moved away from his son's instantly bare skin and stood to grab a robe from the chest at the end of the bed. John handed the robe over and Stiles slipped into the sleeves and belted the soft fabric quickly before the young omega gave John a tight backslapping hug. John didn't know what to think of it until he heard the telling sniffle and tightened his hug for a second before pulling back just enough to catch sight of Stiles' tear glistening eyes, "Come on little man, you can do this."

Stiles nodded, "I know I can Dad, I just don't know if it's worth all the happiness I could have with Derek and Ricky. I am making Ricky insane, I am constantly worrying Derek with my shenanigans and I don't know how to meet somewhere in the middle with all this."

"So ask them, talk to them about meeting you in the middle and believe me, they would do anything for you."

"Well that seems way to straight forward to be of any help," Stiles returned sarcastically and moved away from John who gripped his son's shoulder for another second before he walked back out of the room. The boys only had this one more night before they were heading home and they would need time to talk out at least some of what's going on before returning to their classes and lives on campus and away from the extra care and concern of the pack.

John wasn't worried though, his boy loved his mates too much to do anything but his level best to make Derek and Ricky happy and the alpha and beta were just as love-struck.


End file.
